AN EMERSONS Green gymnast took on the world in an international competition.
Kimberley Chilcott, aged 12, and 15-year-old Shayla McCaughey, from Yate, were selected to represent Great Britain at the 14th Acrobatic Gymnastics World Youth Championships in Pesaro, Italy, in September.
Competing against 40 other women’s pairs in the dual disciplines of balance and dynamic routines, they made the combined final and finished eighth overall.
Kimberley, known as Kimmi, and Shayla are members of King Edmund Acrobatic Gymnastics Club in Yate.
A club spokesperson said: “We are so incredibly proud of Shayla and Kimmi, and what they have achieved at the Youth World Championships.
“At the start of the season, the goal was to make the England squad.
“They then went on to be selected to represent Great Britain and, somehow, they kept going and made it all the way to the world championships!
“They have absolutely exceeded every expectation and achieved far more than we could have ever imagined at the start of the season.
“They stepped out onto the main stage and delivered three clean routines, finishing eighth in the world…what a journey!”
“We couldn’t be prouder of you, Shayla and Kimmi.”
Shayla and Kimmi were selected for Team GB earlier in the year, along with two other pairs from the club.
They won the IDP2 Women’s Pair category at the English Acrobatic Championships in October last year.
Kimmi, a Year 8 pupil at Mangotsfield School, has been practising gymnastics since the was two years old, starting off at a club in Emersons Green Village Hall before going to the King Edmund club at the age of five.
She joined the acrobatic squad in Yate when she was nine, and trains for 16 hours every week.
