The event was held at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham. Northamptonshire Trampoline Gymnastics Academy are 'flying high' with their share of medals at the British Championships where all the country's finest gymnasts met to battle for the highest accolade - The Best Of British. British Champion 2006 - Yasmin Gumbs (16) Under 17, Yasmin approached the event with a bag of confidence on the back of her success at the European Championships where she won a medal. Yasmin was 3rd in 2004, 2nd in 2005 and her no compromise goal this year was to win the British title she has longed for. Gumbs held her composure over the three day event to win with a solid, high & strong performance, much to the pleasure of the crowd. British Champion 2006 - James Higgins (22) Over 19 age group, James stunned the spectators with his showcase routines leading from the first round. James who has only been back in training for 10 months after a two year break is back to his winning ways, showing true style and determination. In the Elite men's event, James was leading after the first two rounds of competition but with a zero final where all the scores are wiped clean to provide spectators with excitement. James competed really well to take the silver medal position just 0.9 behind the winner Simon Milnes from Oldham. James was performing a 13.4 difficulty routine whereas Simon competed a 16.0 difficulty routine. The deficit that James would have had to make up on a zero final round was just too much to ask for at this moment in time but given time he will be able to increase his difficulty to be in a competitive position for number one slot. Jaime Moore (26) - runner up in the Ladies Elite event and the Over 19 age group, 'gutted' can be the only word to describe Jaime as she misses out on the British senior title by just 0.1 to Great Britain team mate, Claire Wright from Bracknell. Nothing much separates these two world class gymnasts who compete together for Great Britain. Jaime gave it everything with a great performance leaving the judges hardly able to separate 1st & 2nd place. Losing a British title on the smallest margin possible is disappointing however, the overall performance of the weekend was Jaime's best as she broke her own record for difficulty completing a 13.1 tariff. Steve Walsh (20) - Over 19 & Men's Elite, after spending 18 months out of the sport and still managing long term injury, a peak performance to date describes Walsh's performance at the National Indoor Arena just missing out on a podium place in 4th place (O19) and a credible 6th place in the Men's Elite.
Read the most recent blog by Northampton's Steve Walsh as he represents Great Britain in trampoline.
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William Howell (15) - Under 17 and Katie Mitchell (17) - Under 19, high & clean performances secured a podium finishes in 3rd place for both Howell & Mitchell. This is where the Academy is now starting to show it's depth with medal positions from Academy gymnasts other then those who already compete at international level (mentioned above). British Team Champions James Higgins, Steve Walsh & Danny Creedon. A considerably young team for Northampton took the overall team title in both the O19 & Men's Elite events. A great achievement for the Academy on top of the individual British titles. Tracy Whittaker-Smith, 2000 Olympic coach and head coach at the Academy said: "We are delighted to report the Academy's success. Last year at the World Championships in Eindhoven, Holland, we decided that things at Northampton needed to change if we were ever going to achieve world class recognition and the hope of Olympic representation. "A six day a week training programme was implemented with some gymnasts also training twice a day. The hard work and 100% commitment from both the gymnasts and staff at the Academy has brought the start of our success. The depth of performances across the Academy this weekend has brought a feeling of elation to everyone involved." Other results: - Katie Mackenzie (14) under 15, 4th
- Amanda Harris (16) under 19, 4th
- Danny Creedon (18) over 19, 8th & Men's elite 10th
- Penny Mitchell (15) under 17, 14th
- Rebecca Pedley (16) under 17, 17th
- Victoria Payne (15) under 17, 19th
- Helen Kirby (20) O19, 22nd
- Under 17 Girls Team 2nd - Yasmin Gumbs, Penny Mitchell, Rebecca Pedley & Vicky Payne
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