Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Club of the week
Cameo Gymnastics Club
Cameo Gymnastics Club have been around since the late 80s.
Around 200 people go to the club every week and are taught skills ranging from the basics to what it takes to compete at a high level.
Sharon Forsyth was one of the enthusiasts who founded the club 29 years ago and her passion for the sport still burns as brightly as ever.
She told the Advertiser more about Cameo.
Tell us about how the club started and flourished.
Cameo started in 1989 just as a wee local club in the Time Capsule.
We had two coaches and plodded along from there, and I’m the only one still coaching from those days.
I did gymnastics myself at club level then transferred into coaching when I was 14.
I coached Monklands gymnastics club many moons ago and then decided to split off and start my own with a friend called Lesley Docherty.
I was in my 20s then and have loved it so much I’ve kept it going.
We’re now in our own rented premises in Dundyvan industrial estate and have been for two years.
As the founder, what’s your background in gymnastics?
I competed at club level and loved what I was doing, so from there wanted to teach others.
I specialised in four-piece gymnastics which is bar, beams, floor and vault.
I started when I was 11 and loved competing and learning within Monklands. I won a few minor medals in floor and vault badge competitions.
How many kids come to the club and what does it offer?
We start taking kids in from three-years-old and have various levels to train at, right up to competitive Scottish gymnastics.
Between the three squads we have about 30 kids who compete for the club.
That consists of two four-piece squads and a floor and vault squad.
We’ve got about 200 in the club in total so around one in seven compete.
We’ve had a lot of success recently but as we’re not a very big club, the successful gymnasts all move on to bigger clubs with better facilities.
If we had done this interview two months ago, we’d be speaking about the Scottish champion in our ranks.
I feel sorry for the two girls that take our four-piece but I just remind them that they got them to the level that means they are in demand from other clubs.
What message does your club promote?
The way we push it is that we want to encourage people to take part in sport and subsequently stay in sport.
That’s why we have our four younger coaches as they came through the club as gymnasts.
We want to let people know there’s something out there for them other than what they get taught in PE class.
Quite often, people get put off sport because they don’t like what is in the curriculum.
But we offer a range of aspects to suit everyone, from recreational gymnastics to being able to compete.
We encourage people to stay healthy and have fun while they’re doing it.
What challenges does the club face?
The challenges are financial and we need to keep money coming in to cover the costs that we need.
That includes the upkeep of current, and the purchasing of new, equipment.
We pay £24,000 a year for our hall lease and also pay our coaches.
All in with everything considered, it probably costs near enough £40,000 to keep the club going, but I suppose that’s part of the reason we all have day jobs.
The good thing is that the hall is ours 24/7 but it’s a hell ofa chunk of money.
Membership fees and fundraising help but it’s not as expensive to come here as people might think.
Kids pay more to go to dancing lessons than a gymnastics membership.
How much do the kids enjoy it?
I think they really do because if they didn’t then they wouldn’t keep coming back!
Sometimes at the end of class we have to drag them off the equipment to get them home at night.
It’s nice to see they don’t want to leave and we love seeing them every week.
It allows them to express themselves and do something different.
A long time ago somebody quoted“kids just want to fly”.
If we’re teaching them to do that through twists and somersaults then it’s no wonder they love it.
What would you say to a kid unsure about joining?
We offer a two week trial period without having to sign up so come and give it a go!
There’s an open door policy and you will make new friends.
If you have fun taking part, then you are well on your way to learning a new skill.