It’s almost Halloween, and we are looking forward to bringing some spooky fun into the gym once again. As half‑term falls during the week of 26th–30th October, our Halloween celebrations will take place a little earlier this year, from Monday 19th to Friday 23rd October.

We warmly invite all gymnasts to come to their session dressed in a Halloween costume during this week. Each group will enjoy a fun themed session. All members should have received an email regarding Halloween celebrations at CNGA.

Session Details

Monday & Wednesday – Beginner Girls Gymnasts may arrive in their Halloween costume and take part in a short parade with prizes for effort and creativity. The hour will include fun games and spooky challenges. Parents are always welcome to stay and watch, although this is optional.

Tuesday & Thursday Classes Gymnasts should wear a Halloween costume to training. The first hour will run as a normal gymnastics lesson. The second hour will include Halloween games with the coaches and leaders, along with prizes and a “Best Costume” award.

Artistic Competition Squad Gymnasts – will celebrate Halloween on Friday 23rd October. Detailed information has been emailed to all squad members.

Half‑Term Closure

Please note that CNGA will be closed for all recreational classes from Monday 26th October to Friday 30th October for half‑term.

We look forward to seeing all the gymnasts in their spooky outfits and sharing a fun, safe, and enjoyable Halloween week together.

City of Newport Gymnastic Academy lit up the arena last weekend as twenty‑four talented gymnasts from the artistic competition squad proudly represented the Academy at the South East Classic Challenge Competition — an event hosted right here at CNGA.

The competition opened in spectacular fashion with Avalyn Halford, competing in the 12–13 years COPPER category on the Saturday morning, delivering a series of outstanding performances across all four apparatus. Avalyn’s confidence, precision, and artistry shone from the very first moment she stepped onto the floor.

Her balance beam routine was a true highlight of the Copper competition — controlled, elegant, and technically superb — earning her a well‑deserved individual gold medal. Avalyn’s consistency across the board secured her the overall gold medal position, an incredible achievement in a highly competitive field.

Her full results were:

• Vault – Silver Medal
• Bars – 4th Place Ribbon
• Beam – Gold Medal
• Floor – Bronze Medal
• OVERALL – GOLD position

Avalyn’s exceptional performance means she will now go on to represent South East Wales at the Welsh Finals on 17–18 October at the Sport Wales National Centre in Cardiff.

A huge congratulations to Avalyn — a phenomenal achievement and a moment of pride for everyone at City of Newport Gymnastic Academy.

City of Newport Gymnastic Academy continued its incredible weekend of competition success as nineteen gymnasts took to the floor on the Sunday in the 10–11 years Zinc and 12–13 years Zinc categories. Across both age groups, CNGA gymnasts delivered confident, expressive, and technically strong routines on all four apparatus — a brilliant showcase of their hard work and dedication.

10–11 Years Zinc Category

Fourteen CNGA gymnasts represented the Academy in this category, producing a fantastic spread of individual results:

• Isla Bastow – Vault: 4th Ribbon • Floor: 6th Ribbon
• Evie Traves – Floor: 5th Ribbon
• Lettie Daw‑Evans – Floor: 4th Ribbon
• Skye Hooper – Beam: 5th Ribbon
• Roselyn Dyer – Vault: Silver Medal
• Harriet Stanbridge – Vault: 4th Ribbon
• Melanie Dirwai – Vault: Gold Medal

Team Results

CNGA proudly entered three teams into this category, each showcasing teamwork, determination, and spirit:

• Team Sparkle Ava Traves, Evie Traves, Arden Williams, Isla Bastow, Lettie Daw‑Evans Silver Medal – Team Position
• Team Pink Alice Ayles, Nevaeh Omoloju, Poppy Pritchard, Marley Howting 4th Ribbon – Team Position
• Team Gold Skye Hooper, Roselyn Dyer, Harriet Stanbridge, Everly Hardaker, Melanie Dirwai Bronze Medal – Team Position

A huge congratulations to every gymnast in this category. Although no top‑six overall placements were secured this time, the standard of performance was excellent. This competition provides a valuable benchmark as these young gymnasts continue to grow, develop, and prepare for the 2027 season. Well done girls — superb effort from all!

12–13 Years Zinc Category

The momentum continued as five CNGA gymnasts stepped forward in the 12–13 years Zinc category, delivering exciting sets of performances during their competition.

Individual Results

Brooke Arnold

• Vault: 4th Ribbon
• Bars: 6th Ribbon
• Beam: 5th Ribbon

Millie Rolfe

• Vault: 4th Ribbon

Georgina Salijeni

• Vault: 4th Ribbon
• Bars: 5th Ribbon
• Beam: Bronze Medal
• Floor: 6th Ribbon
• Overall – 4th Place

Roksana Mikus

• Vault: 4th Ribbon
• Beam: 4th Ribbon
• Floor: Gold Medal
• Overall – 6th Place

Evie Thorpe

• Vault: Gold Medal
• Bars: Silver Medal
• Beam: 6th Ribbon
• Floor: 4th Ribbon
• Overall – Bronze Medal

Finals Qualification

Both Evie Thorpe and Georgina Salijeni achieved top‑five overall placements, earning their selection to represent South East Wales at the Welsh Finals in October — a fantastic achievement and a proud moment for CNGA.

Team Triumph

Their combined strength, consistency, and competitive spirit earned the 12 to 13 years CNGA Zinc Team the GOLD team award — a phenomenal result and a testament to their commitment in training and their composure on competition day.

Pictured below are the 10 to 11 and 12 to 13 years ZINC TEAMS – GO CNGA ! You are all amazing!!

The next group to take centre stage at the competition were three of CNGA’s youngest artistic squad members — Elouise Smith, Milly Brown, and Lily Griffiths. Each gymnast delivered confident, beautifully executed routines, showcasing their growing skills and competitive spirit.

Elouise Smith – 8 Years, Zinc Category

Competing in the 8‑year‑old Zinc category, Elouise Smith impressed with her composure and determination across all apparatus. Her results were:

• Vault – 4th Ribbon
• Balance Beam – 6th Ribbon

Although Elouise did not place in the top six overall to qualify for the Welsh Finals, her performances were full of promise and progression. Everyone at CNGA is incredibly proud of her achievements — well done, Elouise!

Milly Brown – 9 Years, Zinc Category

In the 9‑year‑old Zinc category, Milly Brown delivered her personal best on competition day. While she finished just outside the ribbon and medal positions, Milly performed excellent skills and a lovely, expressive floor routine to music. Her confidence continues to grow within the artistic squad, and her development is clear for all to see.

Fantastic work, Milly — a brilliant step forward!

Lily Griffiths – 9 Years, Zinc Category

Also competing in the 9‑year‑old Zinc category, Lily Griffiths produced an outstanding set of routines, earning multiple podium finishes and one of the strongest overall results of the day. Her achievements include:

• Vault – 8th Place
• Bars – 5th Ribbon
• Balance Beam – Gold Medal
• Floor – Gold Medal
• Overall – Silver Medal

With her superb overall placement, Lily now qualifies for the Welsh Finals in October, representing South East Wales in the 9‑year‑old category. An exceptional accomplishment — congratulations, Lily! CNGA is incredibly proud of you.

A Proud Moment for CNGA

Elouise, Milly, and Lily each brought enthusiasm, courage, and joy to the competition floor. Their achievements — from personal bests to podium finishes — reflect the hard work they put in every week at training.

Pictured below: Elouise, Milly, and Lily celebrating their achievements with big smiles!

Our final gymnast to step into the arena on Sunday was Lydia Porter who represented CNGA in the 14 + years ZINC category. Lydia worked exceptionally hard at the competition achieving the following results

Vault – Bronze medal position

Bars – 6th place ribbon

Beam – 4th place ribbon

Floor – 4th place ribbon

Overall – 5th place position. Lydia also earned her place in the Welsh Finals after qualifying in the top six positions at this weekend’s competition. A fantastic achievement Lydia – well done!

A Weekend of Pride for CNGA

Across all categories, CNGA gymnasts demonstrated resilience, teamwork, and passion for the sport. From individual medal moments to team podium finishes, every gymnast contributed to an inspiring weekend of gymnastics.

Well done to all our five qualifiers to the Welsh Classic Challenge Finals in Cardiff on 17th and 18th October – Good Luck girls!

Finally, Congratulations to all our gymnasts at the regional event — your hard work continues to shine. CNGA is incredibly proud of you!

Monthly CEO Update

Dear Club,

As we reflect on an extraordinary July and August, I am incredibly proud of everything that has been achieved across Welsh Gymnastics.

A Golden Summer for Welsh Gymnastics
Fresh from Glasgow 2026, our Commonwealth Games campaign has been nothing short of historic. With three medals one Gold and two Bronze this was our most successful Artistic Commonwealth Games ever.

A huge congratulations to Ruby Evans on her Gold medal, and to Abigail Roper and Emily Roper on their Bronze medals. Their achievements, alongside those of the entire Welsh team, have given us so much to celebrate. While our gymnasts were competing in Glasgow, there was further international recognition for Welsh talent. Emily James in Aerobic Gymnastics and Elizabeth Popova in Rhythmic Gymnastics were selected to represent Great Britain at their respective World Championships.

Celebrating Success Together
One of the highlights of this month has been seeing the Welsh gymnastics community come together to celebrate these incredible achievements.

Thank you to everyone who supported our gymnasts throughout their Commonwealth Games journey and to those who attended the homecoming celebrations, the event at the Senedd and Ruby’s very special welcome home. These moments reminded us just how much pride and passion there is for Welsh gymnastics across our communities.

Ruby’s summer did not stop in Glasgow. She went straight on to the European Championships, where she achieved an impressive 4th-place finish on Floor, alongside a strong team performance. Congratulations also to Olivia Bryl, who was selected as a British coach for the event – another proud moment for Welsh Gymnastics.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth Popova competed at the World Championships, achieving a total score of 92.35 and Ioana Popova selected as British Coach for the event. Congratulations to Elizabeth and everyone involved in supporting her journey.

Investing in Our Communities
Away from the international stage, we continue to see fantastic progress across the gymnastics community.

Through Be Active Wales, more than £94,000 has been invested in community clubs, supporting opportunities for people across Wales to participate and thrive in our sport.

Our community has also continued to raise vital funds towards Access Gymnastics, demonstrating once again the commitment across Welsh gymnastics to ensuring that our sport is open and accessible to everyone.

We were also proud to deliver the first Delivering Gymnastics Activity course in Britain and have 40 newly qualified Assistant Foundation Coaches. Alongside this, we have trained 11 new tutors including 3 that are Welsh speaking and 12 sports leaders’ tutors who are now ready to support delivery in communities across Wales. This is an exciting step forward as we continue to build capacity, develop people and create more opportunities for participation.

Looking Ahead
As we move into the autumn, there is plenty ahead for Welsh Gymnastics.

We will be undertaking a review of our Commonwealth Games campaign, bringing together insight from across our Performance and Community teams. It is important that we learn from our experiences and, crucially, continue to listen to the voice of our community as we shape the future of Welsh gymnastics.

We also look forward to our Safe Environment campaign, including the introduction of our new banners, as well as our Awards and Conference on the 24th October. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to submit nominations, and I wish the very best of luck to everyone being recognised and celebrated.

September also brings the Welsh TRA, DMT and TUM Championships, and we are looking forward to seeing another exciting month of gymnastics ahead.

Alongside our competition calendar, we will continue to invest in the development of our coaches and judges. This will include the delivery of Practical Level 4 in Wales, supporting coaches to progress their technical knowledge and practical application, as well as continued development of our GFA judging pathway. We will also continue to develop discipline-specific modules, providing more targeted learning and development opportunities across our gymnastics disciplines.

There is a lot to look forward to over the coming months, and we remain committed to creating opportunities for our community to develop, learn and thrive at every level.

Thank You
Finally, thank you to everyone who continues to contribute to Welsh Gymnastics – our gymnasts, coaches, clubs, volunteers, officials, partners, families and supporters.

August has shown what can be achieved when talent, ambition and community come together. From historic international success to investment in grassroots gymnastics, there is so much to be proud of. Please continue to share your thoughts with us – https://forms.gle/pM21n9YGyS6fSZuJA

Thank you for being part of the journey, and I look forward to seeing what we can achieve together in the months ahead.

Warm regards,
Siwan Mair

Amanda Brown, parent of Milly Brown will be doing a sponsored walk today to raise funds for both City of Newport Gymnastic Academy and for a Defibrillator for her school. We are so proud of your efforts Amanda and everyone at CNGA – including our mascot Sedric the Seagull – sends our best of luck wishes to you today – go smash it !!! We know that you will be walking to Abergavenny – wow! that’s over 17 miles! GO AMANDA!!