Gymnast, 10, on a mission to make it to Amsterdam

fuad Esack|Published 2 years ago

Bonteheuwel gymnast Meeka Roman, 10, has been selected to take part at the World Gymnaestrada 2023 in Amsterdam, in July. Picture: Fuad Esack

Meeka Roman, 10, from Bonteheuwel, is a busy bee, always bursting with energy, whether doing gymnastics or having a go at her books.

The little livewire has earned a spot on the SA squad set to take part at the World Gymnaestrada 2023 in Amsterdam, in July.

Meeka Roman, 10, knows how to balance her love for gymnastics and her schoolbooks. Picture: Fuad Esack

A member of the Athlone-based Bemur Gymnastics and Dance and a Grade 4 pupil at Silverlea Primary School, young Meeka has been doing gymnastics for four years and performed the role of Moana, the character featured in the Disney animated film by the same name at a competition last year. She was also part of the team that won gold in their division at the Cape Town Gymnastics Associations “Gym for Life Challenge” in July last year.

However, her acrobatic skill is not enough to get her on the flight to Amsterdam as participants have to cover their own costs, says her mother Pamela, herself a member of Bemur Gymnastics.

To help raise funds the family has been selling boerewors rolls from their home but is still a long way off from reaching their ultimate goal.

“As a family, we have to come up with various ideas to raise money for our daughter to enable her to compete on the international stage. We have raised some funds from raffles and two events and plan to have three more events,” she said.

Meeka and her sister Leah, left, and cousin Micah, following an impromptu gym session on the pavement in front of their house. Picture: Fuad Esack

Bemur coach Barbara Murphy described the youngster and other juniors from the club also hoping to make the trip as a group of talented and hard working gymnasts who had to go through rigorous auditions to be selected.

“We have junior gymnasts and eight senior women of Bemur Gymnastics Club that are part of the Western Cape team representing South Africa at the World Gymnaestrada ,” she said.

“We compete at district, provincial and national level, now we want to showcase our talent internationally,” she said.

An all-round performer, equally adept at doing her school work and gymnastics, Meeka can hardly wait to demonstrate her flexibility.

“Firstly,” she said, “I love the fact that I am getting fit and healthy. Gymnastics is a hobby that helps to keep me flexible,” she says.

If you can help, call 078 086 2681 or visit her Backabuddy page.