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Date posted 13 Nov 2019
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For the past year Welsh Gymnastics has teamed up with staff at our Better leisure centres to promote gymnastic classes for children and young people. Some of the work has been funded and delivered by UK wide British Gymnastics.

Popular classes have been held across our Better Cardiff leisure centres with the aim of bringing in new gymnasts into the sport and increasing opportunities for people to access gymnastics across the city.

Since the partnership with British and Welsh Gymnastics began, we have trained more than ten new Gymnastics Activity Instructors of which three have attended a workshop for judges of gymnastics. A Welsh Gymnastics Leisure Centre Scheme Competition handbook has been piloted at Better and will be officially launched in January 2020,

A competition day was organised on Wednesday 30 October at Better, Pentwyn Leisure Centre to showcase the achievements and talent of the 150 young people currently signed up for classes. Children from the Cardiff areas of Pentwyn, Llanishen, Eastern and Fairwater competed in an apparatus competition on floor, vault and trampette.

Ann Hillman, Sport and Participation Manager, Better Cardiff, said:

“Gymnastics is one of the most popular sports in the UK with participation on the rise and a growing demand to access the sport. As part of British Gymnastics ongoing work to grow capacity, Better Cardiff is glad to be joining the growing list of leisure provider partners helping to increase provision of the sport.

“Gymnastics is a fantastic sport which provides children with great fundamental skills including balance, co-ordination, concentration and confidence that are transferable to lots of other activities. Accessing our programmes across the main leisure centres in Cardiff plays an important part in the development of children who progress on to gymnastics clubs and other sports.

Kathryn Cope, Welsh Gymnastics Leisure Scheme Lead, described the Gymnastics Day as a "triumphant success":

She said: "The gymnastics competition was a triumphant success with fun had by children, parents and staff alike. It was wonderful to see so many children enjoying gymnastics and performing their routines and for most, it was for their first time. This was a significant step in our work to increase the number of ways participants have access to our sport and this partnership will create hundreds of new opportunities.”