Aaria Tana and Abbey Moberley competed in the competed in trampoline, synchronised trampoline, double mini-trampoline (DMT), power tumbling and women’s artistic gymnastic codes in the 17-plus age group at the New Zealand National Championships. Aaria won three gold medals and Abbey won two. The duo have been gold medallists for three years in a row and train eight hours a week to perfect their 30-second routines.
Eight hours of practice for 30 seconds of tumbling through the air.
This is the weekly routine for champion trampoline gymnasts Aaria Tana and Abbey Moberley.
Earlier this month, the teenagers’ hard work and years of training paid off. Competing as pair, they took out two of the top spots for their age category at this year’s New Zealand Gymnastics Championships, coming first in the women’s trampoline and synchronised trampoline categories.
Aaria also took home first place in the double mini-trampoline competition.
The 17-year-old told the Rotorua Daily Post she’s been in love with gymnastics since she first tumbled in 2014.
Aaria said sometimes, balancing schoolwork and the demanding training schedule could be “pretty difficult”.
“My job is also at the gym because I coach, so I’m at the gym every day,” Aaria said.
“Occasionally, when we have homework assigned over the weekend and the holidays, then I might be at a competition getting an essay done while waiting for my turn.”
Aaria Tana, 17, took home first place in her age category at the double mini-trampoline national championships. Photo / Andrew Warner
But Aaria said the feeling of landing after a routine and knowing she had her toes pointed and her movements right was worth all the hard work.
“Routines are only 10 skills long, so they are really short. You don’t have time to think. In the moment, it’s all just muscle memory. In your brain, it’s all squeezed,” Aaria said.
“You just kind of know how you did because you’ve done the routines so much and you know what the movements are supposed to feel like.
“When you get it right, I don’t think I can compare it to anything. When you get it right, it’s so good.”
Aaria, who is in Year 13 at Western Heights High School, plans to study medicine next year. She also wants to keep coaching.
When asked what she would miss the most about training for gymnastics competitions, Aaria didn’t have to think for too long to give her answer: “Having muscles. I’m definitely going to miss that the most.”
Abbey, 18, said nothing compared to landing a good routine on the trampoline.
“It’s super-rewarding knowing all the work you’ve done has led to a success.”
Abbey Moberley, 18, has been training in gymnastics since she was five years old. Photo / Andrew Warner
Abbey said while competitions were “kind of stressful”, they were also fun experiences where she had met “super-nice” people.
“I’ve been doing gymnastics since I was 5, but I didn’t start trampoline until I was about 8. Lots of my friends and classmates were doing it, and I wanted to join in.”
But she still gets shaky waiting for her turn on the tramp, and it was no different at this year’s national championships.
“We were competing against good peers. We were very unsure. We didn’t know our scores until we got called up onto the podium.”
Abbey said she and her best friend Aaria knew they had placed but were not sure what prize they had won.
Abbey, who plans to study animal management at Massey University next year, said she would be taking lessons she learned in the gym to the next stage of her journey.
“Gymnastics is a very individual sport, so having confidence in yourself is important.”
Abbey had these words of advice for any aspiring gymnasts: “Give it a try. It’s worth it.”
Abbey and Aaria’s coach Lynette Farkash said she was proud of the Rotorua team’s accomplishments.
“Our gymnasts have trained hard for the pinnacle event of the season, and this, along with their commitment to training, has paid off,” Farkash said.
