After the cancellation of many sports last year, gymnasts from across Auckland met at the Bruce Pulman Recreation Centre last week to compete at the Secondary Schools Gymsports Championship. It featured the Gymsport disciplines of artistic, rhythmic, trampolining and tumbling.
The young Westlake Girls team competed in the artistic, rhythmic, and trampolining disciplines and Maria Malkova shone. The Year 9 student won gold in the Rhythmic Junior International grade to become the Junior Rhythmic Champion. This accompanies her New Zealand Secondary Schools title that she won last month.
Also in the Rhythmic competition, Westlake juniors, Nadia Franklin and Shalinee Bajwa won bronze in Level 7 and Level 6 respectively. On the other side of the Centre, Year 11 student, Kaitlin Viljoen and Sakura Tsundo represented Westlake Girls in the Artistic competition. Viljoen held off challenges with commanding performances on the floor to win gold in the Step 8 grade. Year 9 student, Sakura Tsunoda won silver and her first Secondary Schools medal in Step 7.
Our solo trampolinist, Alanah Barwick competed in Women’s C grade and completed both her routines to finish 7th in a field of 24 athletes.
All students will now be preparing for the New Zealand Championships next month which will showcase New Zealand’s best gymnasts. We wish them well.
Summary:
Maria Malkova – Rhythmic – 1st in Junior International
Nadia Franklin – Rhythmic – 3rd in Level 7
Shalinee Bajwa – Rhythmic – 3rd in Level 6
Kaitlin Viljoen – Artistic – 1st in Step 8
Sakura Tsundo – Artistic – 2nd in Step 7
Alanah Barwick – Trampoline – 7th in Women’s C