Gymnastics
8 June, 2025
Natimuk gymnasts head to nationals
Natimuk and District Gymnastics Club’s Remi Bailey and Edward Jones will travel to the Gold Coast in July after being selected to represent Victoria at the Australian Gymnastics Championships.
Their selection was based on the results from two trial meets and the recent Victorian Gymnastics Championships campaign that took place between May 16 and 18.
At those championships, Bailey competed in the open’s level eight, where he came second in the floor event, third in the vault, fifth in both the high bar and pommel, and sixth in the parallel bars and rings.
In open’s level seven, Jones finished third in both the vault and high bar, and placed sixth overall.
Lynette Morrow, Natimuk head coach, credited the boys, who also act as role models for younger gymnasts.
"For a small rural club, it's a fantastic promotion for the sport, but it's also an inspiration to the other kids that are out there," Morrow said.
"They see their work ethic, their training, their commitment, and they are life skills that these boys will take with them.
Remi, 17, is excited for the opportunity to compete with the nation's best.
"Definitely a little nervous, but it should be a good experience," Bailey said.
"We're trying to work towards the championships and get our skills a lot cleaner."
Edward, 15, who first started gymnastics in 2015, is aspiring to leave the national championships with some medals.
"I'd like to get a couple of podium finishes at nationals, that's my aim," Jones said.
Bailey and Jones will compete in the open level eight and level seven competitions, respectively.
Morrow noted that the focus will be on refining the boys' routines leading up to July.
"We're going to try and improve their degree of difficulty a little bit, but primarily tidy up their routines," Morrow said.
"We'll look at increasing a couple of skills in the next month and see how we go."
The Australian championships will be held on July 3-17 at Gold Coast Sports and Leisure Centre, 296 Nerang Broadbeach Road, Carrara.