Young local gymnast is on her way to the top
The individual winner of last year’s inaugural Perfect 10 Women's artistic gymnastics event is a local girl who is clearly on her way to reach great heights in this sport.
Although the inaugural South African Gymnastics Perfect 10 Women’s artistic event took place very late last year and therefore did not attract much media attention, there was one contestant who impressed sports experts.
The overall winner of this event, Tyde Cooper, is a young local gymnast who is making a big name for herself at the moment. This 13-year old girl has set the South African gymnastics circuit alight with her recent breathtaking performances.
Already from a very young age she started performing as a gymnast and boasts a string of awards and titles. In 2019, Cooper entered the Junior Olympic level and in her first year of competing at this level, she won the Junior National all-round title.
This was an extraordinary victory for an extraordinary gymnast. She was then selected to represent South Africa at the Olympic Hopes Cup in the Czech Republic. Although this was a tough competition mentally and physically, she gained valuable insight into competing internationally.
Her participation in Eastern Europe brought about new opportunities and learning.
Eventually Cooper ended 2019 with a bang as she achieved top honours by winning the inaugural South African Gymnastics Perfect 10 women’s artistic event, which took place at the University of Pretoria.
The event brought together the crème of gymnastics talent from various gymnastic disciplines across the country.
Not only did the gymnasts compete individually, they were also divided into teams. The colours of the teams were chosen to represent the Olympic rings, forecasting the Tokyo Olympics which will take place later this year.
Although she was the all-over winner, Cooper’s team, the Cheetahs, ended in close second to the Meerkat team.
According to Cooper, her secret to success is hard work, commitment and dedication. She trains at TuksGymnastics under the guidance of head coach Louis Fourie.
Her next goal is to be selected to represent South Africa at the 15th African Championships, which will be hosted at the Matsport Center in Centurion from 30 March to 6 April this year.
However, as a proudly South African sportswoman, her ultimate dream is to one day have the opportunity to hold the flag of South Africa high and to compete on a level made for champions at the Olympic Games.
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