Greenside pupil set for major achievements
GREENSIDE – IMAN Manack, a pupil at Greenside Primary School is optimistic about her future prospects after finishing in ninth position at a gymnastics competition in the USA.
The Grade 5 pupil was part of team South Africa that competed at the United States Association of Independent Gymnastics Clubs (USAIGC) championships in Orlando, Florida between June and July. The competition had 1 350 gymnasts from Bermuda, South Africa, Great Britain, Canada and USA.
Upon being crowned, Manack said she was very happy and proud, “The competition was really big and I didn’t know if I was going to make it into the finals, but I did.”
She spends four hours at the gym, six times a week, and has her sights on competing at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games which will be hosted by the city of Buenos Aires in Argentina.
The 11-year-old, who is also a swimmer, has been in gymnastics since the tender age of six. Earlier this year, she emerged victorious in her age group at the Gauteng provincial championships and went on to finish in second place overall at the national championships.
Principal at the school, Dave Osburn, said the school was very proud of Manack. “It’s wonderful to have children who achieve not only locally and at school, but outside of school as well. To have a pupil achieving internationally is fantastic,” he said. He encouraged her to carry on doing her best in the sport.
