A TEAM of young gymnasts are head over heels after making a big impression in their first ever competition.

Burnley Gymnastics Club boys squad took part in the North West Gymnastics Association’s two piece floor and vault grades competition in Wigan.

The aim of the event was to provide a developmental pathway towards the under 12 British floor and vault standard.

And for all of the five boys competing, it was a big step up, as it was their first time competing at a grades competition.

Max Calverley, Charlie Wheeler, Samuel Cliff, Oliver Mannion competed at Level B with Harvey Bretherton competing at Level 4.

It was a daunting task considering they were up against gymnasts from long standing and highly established clubs from across the North West including City of Manchester and Crewe & Nantwich gymnastics clubs.

But they more than held their own as, between them, they achieve gold and silver standard.

Starting on the vault, the boys soon got into the swing of things, blanking early nerves to gain some superb scores. Max Calverley achieved an impressive score of 9.55 which was matched by Charlie Wheeler.

Oliver Mannion was up next and scored 9.50, with Samuel Cliff stealing the show with a fantastic score of 9.80 - the highest in the category for vault.

Harvey Bretherton, competing at level four and his first competition for over two years achieved a respectable score of 8.60 in a tough category with a high standard of gymnasts competing.

Next up was the floor and again the Burnley boys had a high standard of routine to show off their skills which they have been rigorously practising during their training sessions.

Max achieved a score of 8.80 with Charlie again scoring in the nines with a 9.05, Oliver produced a 9.25 routine while Samuel topped the leader board with 9.30, achieving the highest score in his group for floor. Harvey, who again was competing at level four, delivered his routine effortlessly with a respectable score of 8.70.

After counting up the scores and creating a percentage, the gymnasts were then graded on their performance. Max Calverley (91.75 per cent), Charlie Wheeler (93.00per cent), Oliver Mannion (93.75 per cent) and Samuel Cliff (95.50 per cent) all achieved a distinction with gold and Harvey Bretherton (86.50 per cent) was awarded silver merit.

n The BEST Centre and Burnley Gymnastics Club offer men’s artistic gymnastics classes from the age of five upwards. The classes include getting to grips with the six disciplines; floor, vault, P-bar, pommel, rings and high bar.

For details, contact The BEST Centre on 01282 455068 or email info@thebestcentre.com.

More information can also be found on the club’s website