My gymnastics club’s still bouncing after 34 years

A CHILDREN’S gymnastics club is to start fundraising for equipment to help its growing number of members.

Springbox Gymnastics, which was started by Caroline Sweetman 34 years ago, is based at the sports hall at The Henley College’s Rotherfield campus.

A year ago it added a second location at Wallingford School which has led to a surge in membership so the total number of gymnasts is nowmore than 300.

The club has also moved to a new governing body, which means it has been able to access more opportunities, such as advanced coaching and competitions.

Mrs Sweetman, 65, said: “Last year I put six of the coaches through advanced coaching skills with higher level courses.

“Those who had just started did levels one and four and the other coaches did level two.

“The previous year we got six others to do level one, so nearly all of them are qualified.

“We have done a first aid and safeguarding course too.”

She said the training was essential for the development of not just the coaches but the whole club and its gymnasts.

“They learn from a different perspective, which is definitely inspiring as they come back more enthusiastic and ready to implement new and exciting levels of learning.”

Mrs Sweetman, whose daughter Carly Belcher is voluntary head of squad, said the club needed new equipment after using the same apparatus for the last 20 years.

She bought some high quality floor mats last year but the children needed more if they were to progress to higher levels.

However, she said new equipment was becoming more expensive.

Mrs Belcher, 40, said: “They’re getting to the level where they need to have that level of safety and protection. We have a fully-fledged set of moving bars and new mats but we need to have more bars for conditioning and crash mats to build more advanced tumbles.

“With two venues it makes it difficult to use and transport the equipment.”

The coaches hope to fundraise for new equipment.

Mrs Belcher said: “In the past we have held balls and the kids like to do sponsored tumbles as they like to have a bit of fun too.

“We’re organising a meeting to see what we can do as we want to make it as good as possible for them.

“We spend a lot of our time and effort making sure it’s enjoyable and fun but competitive elements are available for those who want it.”

The club welcomed more than 300 gymnasts and their families to its winter invitational event where the children demonstrated their skills across the apparatus. There were prizes of cups and medals awarded for the best performances as chosen by the coaches.

Mrs Sweetman said: “It was a tough competition but all the children who entered did a fantastic job.

“As coaches, we are very proud to see them perform and the feedback was great as our parents are very supportive.

“The Christmas invitational was a fun competition and they all loved it. It was to show the parents what we had done throughout the year and was just really nice for everyone.”

More than 50 gymnasts at the club from every age group took part in a regional competition at level eight, nine and 10 in October.

Mrs Sweetman said: “It was all new to us as we had never entered before but all our gymnasts finished in the top 10 so we were so delighted.

“It was most of the girls’ first time at a major regional competition, so we were so proud of them all.”

Last year, the club also entered its first national competition with its level eight and seven gymnasts. Mrs Belcher said: “Most of our girls train up to three hours a week, with only an hour of conditioning. We do really well considering we’re not a full-time club.

“They do so many sports anyway and go to school, so they’re not training as much as some of those they are competing against. They have done amazingly well.

“It has also given them a chance to experience different things.”

Mrs Sweetman did gymnastics herself as a child and wanted to continue so she went into coaching, qualifying in 1985.

She started at the Dorian Centre in Sonning Common, now known as Kennylands Gymnastics, before launching Springbox in 1990 as she wanted her two children to follow her lead.

The club met at Henley leisure centre for six years before moving to its current home in order to provide more classes.

Mrs Sweetman said: “We now run three times a week from both Wallingford and The Henley College with 16 coaches across each venue.

“Most of the coaches are family and include my two daughters, niece and even granddaughter. All of them apart from the young ones have been with me since they were young and some are now in their thirties now — they’re like my children.

“Springbox is a family-run business and I’m so lucky to have the most supportive coaches as without them the club couldn’t run, so I must thank Carly, Gemma, Rachel, Lucy, Olivia, Lisa, Cassie, Millie, Mary, Caitlin, Gino, Calum, Daisy, Nicole, Maisie and Roxi.”

The club takes children from age two to 16. It also offers holiday camps. It has new classes from this month in its preschool, recreational and squad advanced classes.

For more information, email springboxgc@gmail.com or visit www.springboxgymclub.co.uk