posted 19 Oct 2010 15:05 by Yuriy Zhovtyuk
[
updated 19 Oct 2010 15:07
]
Five
girls in the Regioal Level WA Squad travelled to Dover for their second competition in this
new Criteria.
There
were only 2 pieces to compete on at this competition; The Bars and the Beam.
First
to compete in the 13+ age group was Kelsey. She put in a faultless performance
on bars but unfortunately fell on her full spin on beam. However her routine
still achieved a score of 23.40 to be place 1st with the Gold medal.
Second
up was Caitlin in the 2000 age group: Caitlin had a fall also but she again achieved
a first place gold medal with a score of 22.050.
The
Meapa continued to impress in the final round where Jade and Jenna both aged 9
and Paige aged 8 put in a strong challenge on both pieces of apparatus to see
Paige also take the Gold medal with a beautiful performance and a score of
22.20 It was a very closely fought competition between Jade and Jenna though
with Jenna taking the Gold medal with a score of 23.850 in a near faultless
performance and Jade settling for the Silver with 23.750 but so close to Gold!
The
gymnasts working at this new Regional Criteria train for 8 hours a week over 3
days and compete in inter-club, Kent
and Regional competitions. They also work towards their British Gymnastic Club
Grades. |
posted 14 Oct 2010 05:11 by Yuriy Zhovtyuk
[
updated 15 Oct 2010 04:54
]
The Meapa Gymnastics club had a lot to celebrate after they had taken
part in the highly competitive South East Regional women’s artistic Championships,
held at the Spectrum Leisure Centre in Guildford Surrey.
 An electrifying atmosphere was felt across the two day competition and a
record entry saw over 200 top gymnasts, ranging in ages from 7 to 15 from Kent, Sussex
and Surrey compete across the four disciplines
of vault, floor, beam and bars.
A fabulous performance came from Sky Bebbington, who at her first
regional championship, won a Gold medal for her overall performance at Level 6
with her team mates Sherri Vine, Lucy McCarthy and Katerina Attwood, fourth,
fifth and sixth respectively. Also
enjoying great success at the competition was Page Holland who won gold at
Level 4 (age group 2001/2002), Hollie
Podger, who won bronze at Level 5, with Chanelle Cole fifth and Rebecca Kalli
coming sixth and finally Kelsey Wells who won Silver in Level 5 (age group
1997).
In addition, the girls did amazingly well in the team events where, totalling
the three top scores from each gymnast in the different levels, The Meapa won
Gold and Silver in Level 6.
Other girls from The Meapa: Eve Hudson, Marnie Taylor, Georgia Mae
Fenton, Hollie Podger, Chanelle Cole and Rebecca Kalli also had cause to
celebrate as they were selected for the South East Regional Gymnastics squad
and will have the opportunity to not only train with other top gymnasts, but
work alongside some of the top coaches in the region. |
posted 27 Mar 2010 14:23 by Yuriy Zhovtyuk
[
updated 17 Aug 2010 14:52
]
The championships were held at the Horsham School of Gymnastics and were split into two competitions, regional and national/elite.
Both competitions involved clubs from Kent, Sussex and Surrey and saw each region fielding their best gymnasts across the four disciplines of floor, vault, bars and beam.
They also had the additional difficulty of ‘range and conditioning’, which requires each competitor to demonstrate the flexibility, agility, strength and power necessary to win at regional level.
The contest is split into two competitions, the first where gymnasts competed in regional grades and the second in national and elite Grades.
In the latter competition, gymnasts also battle it out to finish in the top four to secure entry to the British National finals to be held in Birmingham during April and May.
The Meapa line-up was the strongest ever and saw the girls walk away with a host of medals, as well as places in the elite south east team to compete in Birmingham.
Medal winning gymnasts included Amber Crocher, 14, Piper Hudson, 12, and seven-year-old Millie Wilson, who all won silver.
Georgia May-Fenton, nine, won bronze.
In addition, a solid performance by 11-year-old Natasha Loftus put her in the top five of the competition, which means she will travel to Birmingham as a reserve.
Other gymnasts who were winners on the day, but not eligible for entry to the national finals, were Lauren Campbell (silver), Rio Baker (bronze) and Chanel Cole (bronze).
In addition, there was plenty more to celebrate as all the remaining members of The Meapa gymnastics squad all put in strong routines and all managed to pass their relevant grades.
Meapa head coach Yuriy Zhovtyuk said: “This competition was certainly a highlight in the career of these competing gymnasts and for the coaches and proud parents alike, who support these talented and dedicated youngsters.” |
posted 25 Jan 2010 13:24 by Simon Kirby
[
updated 17 Aug 2010 14:52 by Yuriy Zhovtyuk
]
At the beginning of December 2009, the boys division of The Meapa Gymnastics club took part in their first ever four piece competition, held at the Pegasus Gymnastic Club in Maidstone, Kent.
The South East Region Men’s Artist Development competition attracts many of the regions outstanding young gymnasts. The boys from The Meapa, ranging in ages from 7 – 9yrs, put in a formidable challenge across all four pieces on the floor, vault, parallel bars and rings. It was a very closely fought competition, which saw Leo Milner, put in an outstanding performance to achieve 1st place and walk away with overall gold medal. Commendable performances were also achieved by fellow squad members, James Clarke (who finished 9th), Noah Joseph (who finished 11th) and Thomas Ellerington (who finished 12th).
The resurgence of Men’s gymnastics has been well published after Louis Smith’s medal winning performance at the Beijing Olympics and The Meapa has certainly seen the men’s division expand dramatically. Ukrainian Yuriy Zhovtyuk, head coach at Meapa said “Gymnastics offers both boys and girls the opportunity not only to keep fit, but to develop many other skills and qualities such as strength, flexibility, power, balance and co-ordination. Also, what we have found at The Meapa is that our gymnasts learn to work in a team, take responsibility, communicate with each other and give their best under challenging situations. All the qualities needed to progress successfully through life”.
Here at The Meapa we are always on the look out for future champions and would welcome anyone wishing to come along and test their abilities, call us to find out more information. |
posted 25 Jan 2010 11:51 by Simon Kirby
[
updated 17 Aug 2010 14:53 by Yuriy Zhovtyuk
]
Our very own Lauren Lethbridge was celebrating after retaining her title as British Gymnastics Junior GMPD Champion in the recent British Championships for gymnasts with a disability held in Newcastle.
Lauren, aged 13, who is a pupil at Invicta Grammar School Maidstone, competed against under 16’s from all over the British Isles, one week after returning from a British Squad International training camp in Berlin. Lauren made a clean sweep at the competition winning individual apparatus medals on vault, bars, beam and floor. Lauren also won overall Gold and the engraved silver salver with the highest women’s score of the day.
Lauren (back row, 3rd from left) with the Meapa Squad. |
posted 20 Dec 2009 13:09 by Simon Kirby
The Meapa gymnastics club had a lot to celebrate after they competed in the highly competitive South East Regional women's Grade Championships. An electrifying atmosphere was felt throughout the competition, which saw the highly talented girls from The Meapa walk away with a host of gold, silver and bronze medals and places at the British National finals.
The event held at the beginning of March, ran over two consecutive weekends at two different venues in the UK, The Spectrum Leisure Centre in Guildford, Surrey and the Horsham School of Gymnastics, West Sussex.
Over 200 gymnasts, who ranged from ages 7 to 15 years old showed off there gymnastics skills across the five displines of: bars, beam, floor, vault and range and conditioning.
The competition attracted the strongest clubs from Kent, Sussex and Surrey, which saw the girl's battle it out for places at the British National finals, to be held in Birmingham at the end of April.
The girls from The Meapa who have won a place to represent the South East team include: Annaya Abbleby-Mason, who won gold, Samantha Golding, Natasha Loftus and Jenny Bruce, silver, Mattaya Bruce, and Megan Stringer, bronze. Fantastic performances were also achieved by Amber Croucher and Lauren Campbell who also reached the top five from the competition and will also be part of this elite team.
Everyone at the club is delighted that all the hard work the girls had put in to prepare for the competition was rewarded. The remaining members of The Meapa gymnastics squad all put in strong routines and all managed to pass their relevant grades. |
posted 20 Dec 2009 13:02 by Simon Kirby
Dear Parents and Gymnasts
Welcome to the Spring Newsletter and our latest news.... The Meapa has finally been granted planning permission to considerably extend our premises. This will enable us to improve the existing facilities making the main gym larger and adding extra changing rooms and waiting areas, an upstairs café area and a dance studio to name just a few. Suggested new activities such as Men’s Artistic, Team Gym, Tumbling, Dance, Freestyle and Cheerleading can then be offered.
Capital Funding Action Group Needed
We are looking for several enthusiastic volunteers to form a Capital Funding Action Group for the sole purpose of raising the Capital Funds for our exciting expansion Project which will cost in the region of £1.3m!! Duties will include seeking out and applying for grants, communication with businesses and Local Authorities and general planning for the funding of the new facility. If you can offer any of your time, and would like to be a part of our exciting new project under the direct guidance of the Meapa Executive Management Committee, please contact either Yuriy at the gym or Julie on 01474 816444 who will be happy to talk to you.
Thank You!!
The Meapa would like to say a huge thank you to Tony Kalli and the Metropolitan Police who generously donated £1000 to our funds, we are sincerely grateful and have purchased a new beam which all members will benefit from.
The Meapa is a registered charity and relies on sponsorship and donations to enable new equipment to be purchased. If you or your company or place of work would be interested in sponsoring a piece of new equipment, an event or even the employment of a member of staff or a coach or training courses, we would love to hear from you.
Pre-School Classes
Due to popular demand, we have added extra Pre-School classes and the times are as follows:
Monday 12.45pm - 1.30pm
Tuesday 11.45am -12.30 pm
Tuesday 12.45pm - 1.30pm
Thursday 12.45pm – 1.30pm
Saturday 9am - 10am
The Meapa Pre-School awards scheme will be available shortly enabling you child to gain recognition for their achievements in the gym. Please telephone for details and to register your child for any of the above classes.
General Gymnastics Easter Fun Sessions
During the Easter Holidays we will be running our popular Fun Camps for boys and girls aged 5 – 13, offering fun and games as well as learning gymnastic and trampoline skills on Olympic apparatus.
Wed 8th, Thurs 9th April and Wed 15th, Thurs 16th April
Half Day 9.00am - 12.10pm or 1.50pm - 4.00pm
Full Day 9.00am - 4.00pm
Half day £9.00 Full Day £15.00
Non-members are also welcome should your child wish to bring along a friend but will be required to pay an
additional £5.50 British Gymnastics insurance fee if attending for more than 1 session.
Please book early as places will be limited. Registration forms can be found in reception or download a copy from the website. Full payment must accompany the form to guarantee your place and can be posted in the black box in reception or posted to the correspondence address on the form.
Floor and Vault Squads
The new structure for the Floor and Vault Squad is working well with the gymnasts getting quality time with their coaches and making the progression and advancement from Key Steps & Novice through to Gold level easier both for the girls and the coaches.
Entry to the Competitive Floor & Vault squad is by invitation only after a trial basis. If you would like your son / daughter to be considered to trial for the squad, then please speak to Sheree at reception.
Coach in charge of Floor and Vault is Danielle and the times are: Monday and Friday 7 – 8.30pm
Competition Dates will be announced shortly.
Women’s Artistic Squad Club & Elite Grades
The competitions for the Womens Artistic squad began this year with the South East Regional Compulsory Grades at Horsham on the1st March with passes in Grade 5 for Milli Wilson (5th) Eve Hudson (6th) Marnie Taylor, Melissa Collins and Eliesh Keane.
Lauren Campbell passed her Elite Grade 4 in 5th place and at Grade 3, Annaya Appleby-Mason and Jenny Bruce both passed with Annaya in 1st place and Jenny in 2nd.
The Grades continued in Guildford the following weekend with the new Regional and National grades.
Grade 14 was passed by Jade Dapalma-Gomes (distinction and 5th place) Jenna Pratt and Katie Taylor in the 2001 age group, with Georgia-Mae Fenton taking a Gold medal and distinction in the 2000 birthday group.
Grade 13 was passed by Jordan Thompson (6th) Scarlett Howell, Rio Baker and Caitlin Sullivan.
The rest of the squad all took the higher National grades and the following gained passes at:
Grade 8: Mattaya Bruce (3rd), Olivia Bell, Sian Keegan, Lucy Valentine & Charlotte Barton.
Grade 7: Natasha Loftus (2nd) & Ellie Kirwan
Grade 6: Megan Stringer (3rd) and Amber Croucher (4th)
Grade 5: Samantha Golding (2nd)
Range and Conditioning: Piper Hudson 1st Place.
National Finals
Due to their success at the Grades competitions, Mattaya, Natasha, Megan, Amber and Sam have all earned themselves a place in the Southeast Team to compete at the British Club Grade Finals in Birmingham in April.
Annaya and Jenny will also be competing for the Southeast Team at the Compulsory Grade Finals in May with Lauren a reserve for her team. These girls will be competing against the best gymnasts in the country for their age.
We wish all the gymnasts “Good Luck”
Coaching Awards
Congratulations to the following Coaches in obtaining their Coach Status at various levels:
Kelly Peen BG Core Proficiency Award
Emma Shuttlewood BG Core Proficiency Award
Toni Pratt and Bradley Wooten are currently attending their L1 WA / MA course and we wish them luck in their exam in a few weeks’ time.
Volunteer Coaches / Volunteers
We are always looking for volunteers who are interested in becoming more involved with gymnastics.
It may be coaching, learning to judge, helping with fundraising, gym maintenance etc. No experience is necessary for coaching or judging just a genuine interest in the sport as all training can be given either at the gym or on official courses should you wish to become qualified. Please telephone us in the strictest confidence for a chat. Please ask to speak to Yuriy regarding coaching/judging or Julie for other volunteer positions.
We are currently looking for volunteers for the following:
Coaching – All disciplines
Judging – Womens Artistic and Floor and Vault
Café Area
Web Site : Updating on a regular basis
Marketing/ Publicity : Advertising, Promoting, editorials etc.
Reception Duties: Various Times (see Sheree)
Maintenance of the Gym
Friends of The Meapa: Social Events and General Fundraising.
Friends of The Meapa
We are always looking for new members for our fundraising and events team, The Friends of The Meapa. Ideally we are now looking for several parents to form a new committee and run the group. If you would like to become more involved with organising social and fundraising events, please speak to Sheree at reception leaving your name and contact no. or you can email us at the correspondence address below.
Child Welfare Policy
The Meapa Gymnastic Club has adopted the Child Welfare Policy of British Gymnastics.
The Welfare Officers, Val Payne and Catherine Lethbridge contact nos. can be found on the notice board in the reception. Please contact them to deal with any personal concerns or worries concerning your child’s physical or mental well-being whilst at the Meapa. These officers have attended the appropriate Child Welfare Courses set by British Gymnastics.
All general enquiries regarding your child’s classes or fees should be referred to Yuriy or Sheree and not the welfare officers.
General Gymnastic Classes
The new awards scheme has now been launched with the first successful children receiving their certificates and badges…Well done to you all!!
The General Gymnastics Championships for all children attending General Classes is on the 12th July.
Details will be given out after Easter and the classes will be working towards the set routines according to your child’s age and ability; the emphasis being on taking part and having fun.
New Meapa Web-site
The new web-site has now been launched and can be found at www.themeapa.com Make sure that you check regularly for latest news and events. Forms for holiday camps can also be found under the ‘Downloads’ section.
Dates for your Diary
Sun 29th March - County Squad Training - Deal
Sat 4th April - Last day of Term for General
Gymnastic Classes
Mon 20th April - First day of term for General
Gymnastic Classes
Sat/Sun 25th/26th April - British Club Grades Finals
Birmingham
Sat/Sun 3rd/4th May - British Compulsory Grades
Finals, Birmingham
Sunday 17th May - Kent WA Floor & Vault Comp
At Deal (all Squad)
Sat/Sun 6th / 7th June - British Espoir/Challenge
Espoir - Gloucester
Sun 14th June - Kent WA Twin Piece Comp
at Meapa (all squad)
Sun 21st June - County Squad Training – Deal
Sun 28th June - Pegasus Open Comp WA
At Moat Park (selected gymnasts)
Sun 12th July - Meapa General Championships
(open to all general classes)
Sun 19th July - County Squad Training – Deal
Sun 6th Sept - Deal invitational Comp WA
(level 14, 5 & 4)
The Meapa Gymnastic Centre
Cedar Avenue
Gravesend
Kent DA12 5JT
Tel/Fax: 01474-333299 Gym
Director of Coaching: Yuriy Zhovtyuk
Web-site: www.themeapa.com
Secretary: Julie Hughes
Postal Address: 19 Edmund Close
Meopham
Kent
DA13 0NB
Tel/Fax: 01474 816444
Email: themeapagym@aol.com
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