Aliera Pumpa and Addison Coburn of Echuca-Moama represented Victoria and Palmer's Gym at the Australian Gymnastics Championships. Photos: Winkipop Media.
Two Echuca-Moama athletes showcased their skills against the nation’s best recently.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
The Australian Gymnastics Championships were held from July 3 to 17 at the Gold Coast Sports and Leisure Centre in Broadbeach, and Echuca-Moama’s Aliera Pumpa and Addison Coburn, representing Palmer’s Gym, were among the field.
Both girls featured in the event last year, and the road to selection for the 2025 event began shortly afterwards, the qualifying campaign beginning back in September.
In May, both athletes were selected to represent Victoria in the tumbling discipline, 16-year-old Aliera competing in level 6, and 10-year-old Addison taking to the floor in level 5.
Tumbling is performed on a 25-metre-long sprung and padded track, with competitors completing two passes of eight skills, scored on execution and difficulty.
The level system sets a minimum degree of difficulty that competitors’ routines must meet.
Aliera Pumpa adds a twist to her routine in the level 6 tumbling.
Both Echuca-Moama athletes competed in divisions of more than 30 participants, but each proved themselves among the top tumblers in the country.
Aliera scraped into the top-12, required to make the final, while Addison had an easier path through qualification, advancing in sixth-place.
Competitors retained their points from the qualification passes into a two-stage final round.
Addison attempted her most complex routine of the meet so far in the first finals pass, and logged her best score to that point, but was edged downward one place into seventh, missing the second stage of finals by 0.1 points.
Coming from 12th, Aliera rose through the ranks in her finals pass, finishing in a tie for eighth, but it wasn’t enough to move on to the second stage.
Top 10 finishes in the country were heralded by Palmer’s as great results for both athletes.
Addison Coburn narrowly missed the top-six in level 5.
Melissa Coburn, senior coach at the Moama branch of Palmer’s Gym, and mum of Addison, praised the great work ethic of the two girls.
“Both are very determined and both have a really strong work ethic,” she said.
“There are long hours involved, and both girls actually drive each other.
“You have to be very powerful in the mind for this sport.
“The difference between a placing can be a tiny step.”
Both girls spend five nights a week involved at the gym, training two nights in Moama and one in Bendigo, while Addison joins in with the younger classes the other two weeknights, where Aliera coaches.
Having represented the state, the pair will soon represent the club at the National Clubs Carnival in Queensland in September.
9°C