On Wednesday 21 June Active Kent & Medway had the pleasure of joining Courtney Tulloch at Kingswood Primary School and spend the morning with the Year 4 classes from Aspire Federation. The visit was arranged by Active Kent & Medway as a result of a survey prize draw linked to our recent Primary PE Conference. The Head of Kingswood Primary, who had once been Courtney’s English teacher in secondary school, was especially happy to see Courtney and have him visit the children.
The morning commenced with an hour-long gym session led by Courtney. The children eagerly participated in the session, beginning with a thorough warm-up and stretches. They then moved on to conditioning exercises, followed by a chance to hone their gymnastic skills.
Courtney then went on to tell the children about his captivating journey into gymnastics. In his younger years, Courtney witnessed one of his favourite footballers perform a backflip as a goal celebration and this ignited his interest in the sport of gymnastics. It was during one of his practice sessions at his nan’s house that an accidental kick sent a teacup flying across the room. Recognising the need for an outlet for Courtney’s abundant energy, his mother soon enrolled him at Pegasus Gymnastics Club in Maidstone.
Throughout his career, Courtney has amassed an impressive collection of over 100 medals in gymnastics. However, his path was not without obstacles. Courtney shared that his most significant setback came when he wasn’t selected for the first team representing his country at the Rio Olympics. Instead of giving up, Courtney remained resolute, channelling his determination into the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Courtney went on to win gold in rings and the team event at the Commonwealth Games. Notably, Courtney’s proudest accomplishment is his 2018 Commonwealth silver medal in vault, a discipline that he and his coaches had always believed to be his weakest.
After sharing his story, Courtney proceeded to showcase his extraordinary gymnastic abilities, effortlessly executing backflips, forward rolls, and even a daring forward dive across a trio of teachers. The children also got the opportunity to pose their questions to Courtney. One child asked about his favourite food. Courtney playfully admitted his love for Chinese takeout or Domino’s pizza, but professionally shared that he starts his day with a nutritious breakfast of porridge or scrambled eggs on toast with avocado. To round off their time with Courtney, each child got a chance to have their photo taken with him.
We’d like to take this opportunity to thank Courtney for giving up his time, for sharing his achievements and incredible gymnastic skills with the children.
