Nine year old Abbie James from Horley has been awarded the coveted “Fay Greene Award for Progress in Gymnastics” trophy for her outstanding achievements throughout the last year.
The trophy is awarded annually by Springfit Gymnastics and Trampolining club in memory of a talented youngster who sadly died at the age of 14 in 1998. Provided by her parents, it is presented to the gymnast who, in the opinion of the coaches, has made the most progress in the previous 12 months.
The award came as a pleasant surprise to Abbie who has been with the club since December 2010 and after having no gymnastics background has progressed from an improvers class to advanced, and was even invited into Springfit’s “Elite squad” at their Oakwood Sports Centre training venue last year.
Although there was significant debate over the shortlist by Head Coaches at the club, the achievement was obviously well deserved for Abbie who has improved steadily every month. She has shown a great enthusiasm for the sport, practicing all the time at home and working hard in class to improve her overall ability. Abbie is always out in the garden during summer months perfecting her skills and using self-motivation to increase her flexibility and strength. The extra practice didn’t go unnoticed by her proud coaches, who consider Abbie to be “a fantastic role model for all gymnasts in her determination and enjoyment of the sport.”
Abbie is pictured here receiving the trophy in front of her peers in the Saturday 1pm advanced gym class at Springfit.