“As well as being a New Zealand representative at the world age-group championships, the Indo-Pacific champs and the Australian nationals, she is also a fantastic coach with the club’s younger trampolinists,” Callahan said.
“They all love being coached by Leah. She has a great affinity with them all.”
Scholefield, whose elder sister Hannah shared the best all-round honours with Brea Low last year, started trampolining under Callahan when she was six.
“She picked it up quickly but it was her can-do attitude that stood out,” he said.
“Leah has worked hard over the years to improve her form, degree of difficulty and skills.
“Her goals for next year are to get selected for the New Zealand team to compete at the Australian nationals (in Melbourne) and the New Zealand team to compete at the world age-group champs (in Tokyo, Japan).
“She has posted a qualifying mark on double mini, which is her best discipline, and she’s not far away from posting a qualifying score on tramp.”
Callahan said qualifying scores did not necessarily mean she would be selected.
“It depends on the number of trampolinists they want to take away to these international events.
“If she continues to improve and perform well — with more height and bigger degree of difficulty during the five qualifying events next year — there’s no reason why she can’t make both teams in double mini and tramp.
“Since she has combined her trampolining with rowing, she has got stronger and it is showing in her bouncing.”
A change in scoring proved costly for Scholefield in the youth international division at the Australian nationals last year.
She won bronze in the synchronised section, with Aucklander Abigail Mills, but finished ninth on tramp and 10th on double mini.
Scholefield made the final on tramp. But unlike New Zealand, where scores are carried through, the scores in the Australian competition were wiped and everyone reverted to zero.
Had Scholefield kept her scores going into the final, she would have finished sixth.
She also missed out on a spot in the double-mini final by 0.2 of a mark.
Both efforts were remarkable, considering Scholefield suffered from shin splints shortly after arriving in Australia and during training before the event.
A competitor previously in the youth international class (10 to 12 years) and sub international (12 to 14yrs) Scholefield is now in the junior international division (15 to 17yrs).
