Gym extension will handle 1000 athletes Volleyballers set sights on Aussie championships

l CAIRNS ESPLANADE

| Isabella Guzman Gonzalez

SEVEN local young beach volleyball players will join the Queensland team at the Australian Youth Beach Volleyball Championships (AYBVC) in Coolangatta from March 27-30.

l BENTLEY PARK

| Isabella Guzman Gonzalez

NOT-for-profit club South Cairns Gymnastics aims to fundraise $15,000 in 2023 to buy new equipment and complete the $2.3 million renovation of their gym that will fit over 1000 gymnasts.

Founded in the 1980s, South Cairns Gymnastics has been experiencing exponential growth in the last decade, and with over 400 members by early 2023, they have outgrown their space.

The club works in partnership with Gym Sports FNQ. South Cairns Gymnastics owns the venue and equipment, and Gym Sports FNQ runs the competitive and recreational gymnastics programs for children and adults.

So far, South Cairns Gymnastics has received funding from federal government through the Northern Australia Development Program (NADP) grants ($978,700) and another round of funding from Cairns Regional Council ($911,312) for the building’s expansion. The club is now searching for funding for the gym’s equipment.

Through 2023, South Cairns Gymnastics will focus on fundraising efforts starting with a Mother’s Day raffle up to early May.

Gym treasurer Jodi Payne said the expansion of the gym would ensure more opportunities for local gymnasts.

“We’ve grown consistently over the past

20 years,” Ms Payne said.

“We grew too big for our space, and we now have people on waiting lists. Construction of the building has begun and should be finished in June this year.

“The government and Cairns Regional Council allocated funding for us, and we had to take a loan for the difference to almost triple the size of our building.

“As a part of that process, we need to find funds for the specialist equipment the gymnasts need.

“To host authorised competitions, we need special equipment, and that’s what our fundraising will go to; we’ll also develop our coaches, gymnasts and judges through development programs that the club pays for.”

Ms Payne said the number of members would double by the end of the year, and a new building would allow them to cover the demand.

“We started the year very strongly with over 400 members, and that will grow over double that by the end of the year,” she said.

“The new space will give us the capacity to have over 1000 gymnasts.

“We’re going to have 1000 young people running around who need us all to get together so they can have the facilities and resources available to them just like they have down south.”

South Cairns Gymnastics have started their fundraising efforts through a Mother’s Day Monster up until May and a fun run event in September.

“It’s been a long journey for our gymnastics club, and hard-fought with fundraising and those grants and those key stakeholders, but to keep everything moving along, we really need the local support,” Ms Payne said.

“South Cairns Gymnastics have brought up amazing gymnasts over the years. Back in 2021, we had the first level place in Queensland for one of our level four gymnasts.

“This year, we have six girls going to the state championships as seniors, and that’s a big deal.

“They’ve really developed; these kids have been a part of our club for many years.”

Ms Payne said some trained up to 15 hours a week and needed more space to enjoy the sport.

She said this was the perfect time for the community to support gymnastics and Cairns’ raw talent in the sport.

To sponsor and/or donate to the club email info@southcairnsgymnastics.org or call Jodi Payne at 0420 929 949.

The AYBVC is the annual premier beach competition for junior athletes on a state-versusstate competition.

Seven Cairns Reefers Volleyball Club athletes will join the Queensland team in hopes of becoming the champion state.

The team of seven of Dipti Sureshbabu, Kirra White, Christina Morton, Kip Fraser-Skeath, Damon Begley, Boudicca Fraser-Skeath and Jack Farmer will compete in the U17, U16 and U14 categories with the Queensland team.

Cairns Volleyball Association president and team coach Chris Poppell said AYBVC allowed the kids to grow in competitive volleyball.

“Volleyball has been quiet in Cairns, a big part of this competition is growing the game,” Mr Poppell said.

“Last year, we travelled with four kids; this year, we’re travelling with seven. So if the kids see that there’s a doorway, not only to play volleyball competitively but also to go away and represent their city and state, it increases engagement.

“Next year, we could take an even stronger team, and locally there would be more talent for others to learn from.”

Mr Poppell said this year the team had improved considerably for the AYBVC.

“We’ve had to modify skills and teach them how to use the weather to their advantage, but most of them have a background in indoor volleyball, so they’re already 70 per cent there; the rest is about redesigning that 30 per cent,” he said.

“Last year was a learning experience for us, it was late for Cairns to get involved, and we were still perceived as north Queensland but not a part of Queensland, but we’ve built our own identity this year.

“I believe the kids are going to do well; across the state, at this level, Cairns is hitting well above its weight.”

With most competitive beach volleyball played down south, Mr Poppell said AYBVC was crucial for FNQ athletes to have more opportunities and to promote the quality of the game up north.

“The other huge part for Cairns and us is that there are at least 10 events between the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast, so the kids down south have to travel about 90km, and they can play in 10 tournaments while kids here have to travel over 300km to play one tournament in Townsville,” he said.

“AYBVC means our kids get seen by southeast Queensland; they can go and show that they’ve got something that puts them on the radar, remind them that we have great talent in the Far North, and we shouldn’t be forgotten.”