Kylah bags silver medal at provincial comp
"We don't always go home with gold, there are days when we go home with bronze and I have a very upset daughter," Kylah's mom, Shanice Crook.
SEVEN year old Kylah Crook recently represented KZN at the Inter Provincial Artistic Gymnastics Central Zone Festival in Bloemfontein. The grade 2 Yellowwood Park Primary School (YPPS) learner competed against gymnasts from Gauteng, Free States and the North West, between Thursday, 13 and Saturday, 15 June. The young athlete bagged a silver medal with a score of 34.8, just a mere 0.2 points shy of a gold medal.
“We don’t always go home with gold, there are days when we go home with bronze and I have a very upset daughter but just constant motivation and encouragement and showing interest to what your child wants to do is important. Also trying to find balance with school work and managing practice and just giving them as much support as you can,” said Kylah’s mother, Shanice Crook.
She added that she is extremely proud of her daughter and that the constant encouragement and support they give her is paying off. “It is a lot of training, especially during competition times, they train almost all week in addition to Saturday classes for two hours. It’s the commitment we give her, between my husband and I, we usually dedicate our Saturdays to sitting and watching her and giving her the support and encouragement she needs. And making sure that she gets to all her practices on time, that she has her equipment and whatever she else needs,” she said.
Shanice said Kylah has always been an active child and her role as her mother was to ensure that she channels that energy in the right direction. “She loves the thrill she gets from gymnastics. She is a very flexible child. She initially wanted to do ballet but because I know her so well, I took her to a class for gymnastics, asked her to try one out and since then she’s been hooked, she hasn’t asked to do ballet ever again. She loves jumping around and being active.”
The level one gymnast is slowing earning her stripes on the field boasting an array of accolades in the short span of six months since her first competition. Her awards include a range of medals, and most notably, district and union colours.
Practice makes perfect, during her leisure time, Kylah watches Youtube vidoeos of gymnasts on higher levels for inspiration.
YPPS principal Bongani Khanyi said, “I’m so proud of Kylah. She has accomplished so much in a sport that is not very popular in our community. We wish her all the best in the upcoming competition in Bloemfontein as she will be representing KZN. As a school, we are grateful to have learners such as herself who excel in their activities and fly the school’s flag high. We promote and we support this. Keep up the good work and congratulations, Kayla.”
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