Yate gymnasts win European Championships gold

TWO gymnasts based at Yate’s King Edmund Acro Club triumphed at this year’s European Championships in Acrobatic Gymnastics.

Esmè Mathias and Natalia Gilbert (above) represented Great Britain at the event in October, holding off challenges from Spain and France to win the Junior Women’s Pairs title in Varna, Bulgaria.

Club manager Mark Thorne said: “The girls and the coaching team did an amazing job.

“After a very good opening balance routine, scoring a very high 27:530 which gave a great platform to grow on, next up was their dynamic routine, with another good score 26:470 which claimed their spot in the all-important overall final.

“The pressure was on as the draw put them last out, so they knew what other scores were coming in and also could see some had made mistakes.

“All they had to do was complete their last routine clean, which sounds so easy but when a European Gold medal is on the line, it’s very easy to lose concentration.

“With such a wonderful build up to this competition, where they worked tirelessly with the coaching team making sure they were not just physically fit, but also mentally fit and ready for any challenge, they held it together and produced a clean routine which claimed the main prize.”