Overall Grade 5 winner India King on the beam. Picture by Jennifer Burton.
GYMNASTICSTHE standard just keeps getting higher and higher in IW gymnastics, as these stars proved at Carisbrooke College last weekend.
The fourth annual IW inter-club championships had a new club join the fray, with West Bay joining the already established Queensway, Carisbrooke and Sandown teams.
And they made an instant impact, winning the over-eights team competition and coming second in the under-eights.
Competitors had to take part in four events — trampet, bench, vault and floor — with their points adding up toward the team total.
The under-eights contest was won by Carisbrooke, with West Bay second, Queensway third and Sandown fourth.
For the over-eights it was all change, with West Bay winning from Sandown, Queensway and Carisbrooke.
Running at the same time was an individual competition for the Island’s talented and gifted gymnasts, as they took on the vault, floor, beam and bar.
Rather than have the contest split into age groups, the gymnasts were split into ability, with a Grade 5 and Grade 6 contest.
Lacey Matthews enjoyed victory in all Grade 5 events except the bar, where India King triumphed. And it was India’s consistent scoring across all the events which earned her the overall points title.
In the Grade 6 competition, Will Riley showed his skills with victories in the vault and floor, but victory in the beam and other good scores earned Ruth Gale the overall win.
The event was organised by Emma Matthews, of the IW Council sports unit, and Carol Ward-Reynolds, extended services Carisbrooke cluster manager, who said: "It was a brilliant event. You can really see the improvement they are making and although it is a tough event to organise, it is more than worth it.
"I would like to thank all the volunteers and supporters who helped out on the day, without them it would not have run."
• Full results and more pictures in the Friday, May 18, County Press.
Reporter: sport@iwcpmail.co.uk