SOUTHAMPTON Gymnastics Club hosted the first competition to be held at their new dedicated gymnastics facility in Redbridge - despite the fact the building has not yet ben officially opened.

The Sports Acrobatics Southern Region National Development Plan (NDP) Preliminaries is an important competition in the Sports Acrobatics calendar, with the winners of each category qualifying to compete in the national finals in Stoke in May.

Getting the sports hall ready for the competition was tight - the new sprung floor and tumble track only being laid two days before, and corridors still being painted the night before.

Southampton gymnasts had not even had the chance to train with their new equipment.

But that didn't stop Nyssa Jarman, Sadie Dougherty, Carly Andrews, Sarah Pike, and David Treagus all winning national finals places.

Southampton are now looking forward to the official opening of their new facility in April - the end of a two-year period during which a lack of facilities has severely impacted their ability to train properly.

The Southampton Amateur Gymnastics Club is a voluntary organisation which relies on membership fees and charitable funding. Most of the club's 60 coaches are unpaid volunteers.

The club currently provides gymnastics opportunities for over 400 people, aged from baby to adult.

They have been awarded High Performance status for Sports Acrobatics by British Gymnastics, and is also one of the first clubs to earn the British Gymnastics Gym Mark for quality.