Esprit girls can’t stop ‘medaling’.

Only two weeks after being accepted into the South West Artistic Gymnastic squad, Courtney Hows, aged 10 from Wroughton, has won her first major gymnastics title. Courtney was competing in the South West grades competition at the Wiltshire School of Gymnastics in Melksham against 64 of the best gymnasts from the South West. Not content with winning her age group, she scored the highest mark for the whole competition.

Proud mum Deb said: "We never follow the scores at competition so we had no idea she had won, but she competed all her pieces very well." Esprit enjoyed even more success on the day with Jessica Shimwell, 9, earning a bronze in her age group and Ellie Barratt, 10, winning a silver medal in her respective age group.

Esprit girls coach Katy Smith said: "We are such a young club we aren't able to field large squads of gymnasts like others in the region, but what we lack in quantity, we really make up for it in quality. "All three of our girls, the only ones who took part, scored exceptionally well and deserved their medals."

All of the Esprit gymnasts showed why Swindon is fast becoming the `centre of excellence' for the sport in the South West, with gymnasts and the region's top coaches travelling to the facility to train. Jessica and Courtney will both be members of the South West team going to the national finals in Kettering on April 23 and 24.

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