British Championships 2013

Apparatus Finals

Sunday saw the last day of competition of the 2013 British Championships. The Apparatus Finals were hotly contested and the 2013 Champions were crowned on all four apparatus for the Seniors, Juniors and Espoirs.

Vault

For the Espoirs, Maisie Methuen took the Gold medal (13.450) with two very clean handspring vaults, the first tucked and the second one piked. Phoebe Turner, who took Silver (13.075) performed a FTY for her first vault and a straight Yurchenko for her second. Lucy Stanhope who took the Bronze medal (12.950) preferred the handspring half turn approach with a pike back somersault for her first vault and a tuck back for her second.

In the Junior Vault Final it was Ellie Downie who successfully took the title (13.775). She vaulted brilliantly, with a FTY for her first vault and a round off half turn tuck front for her second vault. Taking the Silver medal was Amy Tinkler (13,750) with a FTY and a straight Yurchenko. Tyesha Mattis took the Bronze medal (13.300) with a straight Yurchenko and a FTY. I was however, quite disappointed that we were not treated to her fantastic DTY for the finals.

In the Senior competition, Niamh Rippin successfully defended her vault title from last year's British Championships (13.800) with a one and a half twisting Yuirchenko for her first vault and a round off half on pike front second vault. Kelly Simm took the Silver medal (13.625) with two very cleanly performed vaults, a FTY and a handspring tucked front. Amy Regan and Eleanor Thompson tied for third place (13.525). Amy also performed a FTY and a hadspring tucked front while Eleanor showed us a straight Tsukahara and a handspring tucked front.

The winning routines: 
Maisie Methuen 
Ellie Downie
Niamh Rippin


Bars

All three of the bars finals were great to watch and there were some spectacular routines throughout the morning.

In the Espoir competition Georgia-Mae Fenton took the Gold medal (13.200) with a beautiful routine. Her work was very clean and included a nicely flighted tkatchev and an almost nailed double tuck dismount. Teal Grindle took the Silver (12.850) with another very clean routine which included a gienger and a fantastic full twisting double tuck dismount. Catherine Lyons took the Bronze medal (11.800) despite a fall in her routine. She swings very gracefully on the bars and also had the difficulty, with a well flighted gienger and a double Arabian dismount.

Amy Tinkler took the Gold in the Junior competition (12.900) with a solid routine which included a beautifully high tkatchev and an almost nailed full twisting double tuck dismount. Ellie Downie and Chantelle Halford tied for second place (12.450). Ellie showed that she is following in big sister Becky's footsteps when it comes to great bars work, with a sky high tkatchev and a great double straight dismount. Chantelle impressed with two fantastic release moves, a tkatchev and a jaeger, and a beautifully performed double straight dismount.

For the seniors, the battle was on to see who could take the bars crown in the absence of Beth Tweddle. The girls showed us that British bars is set to be a force to be reckoned with still, with two amazingly difficult routines from Becky Downie and Ruby Harrold. On the day it was Becky Downie who took the title (14.050) with a fantastic routine, despite a slight error in the middle. Her combinations and flight moves are stunning and she has the ability to make it look easy. Gabby Jupp managed to sneak in and take the Silver (13.700) with a very cleanly performed routine. Her jaeger was lovely and her full twisting double straight dismount was practically perfect. Ruby Harrold managed to take the Bronze medal (13.250) despite a fall, which shows the difficulty of her routine. She has a stunning bars routine which elicited many gasps from the crowd, especially her transitions from high to low bar.

The winning routines:
Georgia-Mae Fenton 
Amy Tinkler 
Becky Downie 


Beam

Beam is always a testing piece of apparatus and that was no exception in these finals, but there were many exceptional performances across all three beam finals.

In the Espoirs, Teal Grindle took the title (13.900) with a clean and confident routine. She looked calm and self assured throughout, moving fluidly and showing some great acrobatic elements, including a fantastic side somersault. In Silver was Maisie Methuen (13.350) with a clean and fluid routine with some nice acrobatic skills and a great double spin. Louise McColgan took the Bronze (13.250) with a confident performance which included some great leaps and jumps as well as the acrobatic skills.

Tyesha Mattis took the Gold medal in the Junior competition (13.800) with a strong and confident performance. Her acrobatic skills included a side somersault and a back flick with two layouts. Ellie Downie earned herself another medal by placing second on beam (13.550). She looked confident throughout with some solid acrobatic moves, including a great front somi. Amy Tinkler took the Bronze medal (13.400), gaining confidence after a few nerves at the start. She has some very difficult work including a full twisting back tuck and a great double tuck dismount.

For the Seniors it was Gabby Jupp who took the Gold (14.750). This massive score was the result of a fantastic routine where Gabby showed her poise and confidence throughout. Highlights included a back flick to two layouts, a front somi and a double spin. Hannah Whelan took the Silver medal (14.350), showing her usual poise and control on this apparatus. She looked calm and self assured throughout and showed off some difficult skills including an aerial cartwheel to back layout and a great two and a half twisting dismount. In third place was Georgina Hockenhull (13.350) with a very elegant routine. She had some lovely leaps and jumps alongside her acrobatic elements, which included a great side somi.

The winning routines:
Teal Grindle 
Tyesha Mattis 
Gabby Jupp 


Floor

I always find floor finals really enjoyable to watch and these were certainly no exception. There was a great deal of artistry and musicality alongside some very impressive tumbling.

In the Espoirs there was a tie for first place with Catherine Lyons and Teal Grindle sharing the Gold (13.900). Catherine gave a graceful and elegant performance, as always, moving beautifully with the music which really suited her style. She also had great tumbling to match her gorgeous dance work and choreography. Teal's style was very different but no less enjoyable. She had lively music and good choreography as well as some impressive tumbles. Louise McColgan picked up the Bronze medal on floor (13.700) with a lovely routine which I had been really looking forward to watching. She is a tiny gymnast, yet oozes confidence and personality on the floor. She gave a great performance, with some great tumbling too, and captured many gymnastics fans' hearts with this lovely routine.

In the Junior competition it was Amy Tinkler who took the Gold medal (14.200). She performed a fantastic routine, fast paced and lively and she looked like she was enjoying it throughout. She also had some incredible tumbling, with a great double straight and a full twisting double pike as her first two passes. Tyesha Mattis took the Silver medal (13.900) with dramatic music and an expressive routine. She moved well and performed confidently and had some very strong tumbling. In third was Jade Armstrong (13.350). She gave a clean and elegant performance with good choreography and good tumbling.

For the Seniors, it was another title for Gabby Jupp (14.350). She combined clean and sharp dance moves with some impressive tumbling, including a double Arabian as her opening pass. Raer Theaker took the Silver medal (14.200) with some very clean tumbling. I really like Raer's floor routine, she moves with grace and elegance and looks very stylish on the floor. Niamh Rippin finished in third place (14.000) with her usual display of strong tumbling and dynamic floor work.

The winning routines:
Catherine Lyons
Teal Grindle
Amy Tinkler
Gabby Jupp