Orianne Slater of City of Aberdeen Gymnastics Club (COAG) competed in the Disability Artistic Gymnastics 2017 British Championships at Lilleshall National Sports Centre in Telford on Sunday 1st October and retained her national title for the third year in a row!
The gymnast has Perthes’ disease, which has caused deterioration of her hip joint. This didn’t deter her from joining COAG at the age of 10 and head coach, Lorna Presly, accommodated her in the mainstream beginners’ class, continually monitoring Orianne’s progress whilst being considerate of her disability. Orianne was keen to progress and learn more complex skills but as a result of her hip deterioration, she was unable to master the split (essential in mainstream gymnastics) and this is when Lorna suggested moving on to participate in disability gymnastics. Since summer 2015, Orianne has trained monthly with the disability gymnasts of the City of Glasgow Gymnastics Club as well as maintaining her weekly training with COAG.
Orianne is now 2017 British Disability Junior Overall Champion, but she didn’t stop there: she surpassed any of her previous year’s performances and achieved Gold on each apparatus (Floor, Vault, Uneven Bars and Balance Beam).
2017 is Orianne’s last year in the Junior category. All her scores were comparable to competitors in the Senior category and her performance should stand her in good stead for her progression to Senior level.
Many thanks to Lorna for coaching and supporting her all through the Junior years, to City of Glasgow Gymnastics for sharing their specialist training expertise and facilities, and to the organisations, including Grampian Disability Sport, who have provided funding to help Orianne on her sporting journey!
Well done to all of the competitors and congratulations to Orianne!