Welcome to Ace Gymnastic Club plus Ace High Cheerleading Squad!!
Our club is made up of young people who want to achieve fitness and skills by having fun!
Welcome to our page and just a few words to let you know how it is all going!
Our club now had it's own sprung floor and wall to wall mirrors to give our gymnasts and cheerleaders the best chance to see how their working their routines etc.
With hosting and trainig the Team Ireland Squad along with Aoibhinn Carlin from Derry we are going to do alot of travelling throughout the country to achieve a quality routine.
Also the All Ireland Cheerleaeding Compeition is on in October and this will be a wonderful time for Ace High to show off its talents in all the squads and indeed the solo routiens!
Also the Gymnasts have their work cut out for them as they prepare for the ATT and qualifers for the All Ireland's..
We train many times per week in relaton to what level you are at and some are so dedicated they even attend the 3 parts of the club - Cheerleading , Gymnastics & Tumbling .... Well Done!!
We are now concentrating on the competition squads, teams, pairs and trios who are busy putting it all togerther for the next year ahead.
The beginners are also putting the effort in and it's great to see how well they are all improving!! Keep up the good work guys!!
Written by Stephen Glennon
A RECOGNISED and major sport in the United States, with an estimated 1.5 million participants in its all-star discipline, cheerleading is now beginning to capture the imagination of young people in growing numbers this side of the Atlantic Ocean.
While the sport is not officially recognised in Ireland, it has been brought under the umbrella of British Gymnastics in England. Tuam woman Fiona Collumb, who is affiliated to United Kingdom Cheerleading Association and who runs Ace High Cheerleding.
Indeed, from logistics to health and safety, there is a huge volume of procedures for a coach to consider, but Fiona says once good practices are put in place, the art of cheerleading can be one of the most enjoyable disciplines any person will experience.
This was brought home to Fiona and her students when they attended the inaugural All-Ireland & International Cheerleading Championships in Dublin last month. “We brought the squad up to see it. Now, we didn’t compete because we are just newly formed, but the energy was absolutely astounding.
“I think what struck me the most was that every club cheers for the other club. There was such a comradeship, even among rival clubs. It was absolutely fabulous. There is a real spirit about it. It was fantastic.”
For most Irish people, their cursory knowledge of cheerleading comes from what they have seen from American TV programmes and movies, which have, for the most part, created two stereotypical characters. One, the pretty, size-zero blonde with an annoyingly bubbly, in-your-face persona or, two, the stunningly beautiful blonde with a downright nasty, spiteful streak in her. However, Collumb says the reality of cheerleading is far different. There were kids in all shapes, all sizes there and they were part of a team, part of a troupe.
Fiona has a long history in teaching Childcare as a tutor and being involved in children's activities for many years.
Fetac Level 5 and Special Needs Qualified Fiona has always been part of developing children's lives to the best of their abilities
.Her two children – Conor (14) and Aoife (12) – got involved in a local gymnastics club in Tuam two years ago. They were very successful, taking home medals from competitions as far flung as Switzerland, and All Irelands - and just like any supportive parent, Fiona wished to learn more about the sport.“I wanted to become a qualified recognised coach. “There is quite a strict regime to become a coach and you do a lot of assessments. I had to study in various gymnasiums around the country and it gave me great insight to experience how each club operates and achieves the best for its sutdents.
. When I completed the course, I then looked around and I said I want to bring something different to gymnastics. I now have 60 registered members in my club, considering I am only open since mid September. I am delighted with that, but I have to give a mention to all the parents. They have been great supporting me and the club .”
Next on her to do list was the Cheerleading which she is qualified with UKCA and intends to move up the ladder of coaching to judging soon.
Initially running classes out of Tuam Scout Hall (Gymnastics) and Body and Soul (Cheerleading) on the N17, Fiona subsequently set up classes in a number of venues throughout the county Galway - The Gymnastics Club in Claregalway Community Hall Also classes in Galway City at two locations for the Cheerleading, Ballybane Community Centre on Wednesdays (afternoons and evenings) and in Shantalla Community Centre every Saturday afternoon.
In addition Fiona is teaching gymnastics in various national schools around the city and county – taking in schools in Tuam, Headford, Gort and Merlin Park – and she hopes at some stage to expand her operation into secondary schools for the Cheerleading element.
A very dedicated woman who has the complete interest in the welfare of the child.
All in all, though, she insists the main objective of promoting cheerleading is to keep girls involved in a sporting activity for as long a period as possible. Keeping them acitve and involved in a team activity which generates a huge team spirit is vital for their all round devleopment.
“Out of all the studies regardsing young people getting involved in sports, they all show that a lot of girls, even as early as fifth and sixth classes, are dropping out of sport, unless they are heavily involved in that particular sport. In time, though, that interest also fades, particularly in outdoor sports.
The girls don’t want to get into outdoor sports because it just doesn’t suit their image as they get older,” says Fiona, who highlights that cheerleading offers a very viable and energetic alternative.
Indeed, she reiterates that the movement, chanting, dance moves and music make it an attractive proposition for any young person. She adds: “It is hugely high powered and high spirited. Some routines are simple and others detailed, depending which competition you are in. So, it is a great discipline for girls to get involved in – and it is mostly for girls.”
That said, it is not exclusively a sport for the fairer sex, with boys also needed to execute some of the more daring moves, such as stunting &. “You need lads for holding up & throwing the girls!!,” says Fiona. “They may not be doing the pompons – (they don’t do pompons) – but they will be doing other moves, such as tumbles. There is a lot they can be doing within the troupe, and within the routine.”
