First of the home nations teams announced for the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, team Scotland. Let’s meet the three WAG gymnasts selected to head down under to Australia ready to compete at the beginning April.

Cara Kennedy

Age: 20
Club: City of Glasgow
Coaches: Sandra Stevenson, Rod and Pauline Smith

Cara is selected for her second Commonwealth Games, having helped the Scottish team to fifth place four years ago in Glasgow. After the event she underwent surgery on an ankle injury she’d been carrying through the Games, which turned out to be a ligament separated from the bone in two different places, Cara must be one incredibly tough competitor.  A long period of rehabilitation followed, where she wasn’t able to return to competition for the remainder of 2014, and the majority of 2015.

In 2016 Cara took the senior Scottish AA title, as well as the beam and bars titles, she competed at International Gymnix in Montreal in the Challenge category where she made the floor final placing 6th. Cara competed at the British senior Championships placing 18th AA in 2016, as well as Northern European Championships where she helped the Scottish team to 5th place, and finished 12th AA.

In 2017, Cara competed on bars at the Scottish Championships, where she took bronze, then at the British a few weeks later, she competed on both bars and beam. Towards the end of 2017, Cara headed to Iceland with the Scottish team for the Northern European Championships, where she won a brilliant team bronze, and paced 6th on vault.

Congratulations to Cara on her selection, and good luck!

Isabella Tolometti

Age: 18
Club: Garioch Gymnastics Club
Coaches: Janine Roberston, Cathy Osbourne

While the last Commonwealth Games took place in Glasgow, Isabella Tolometti was a junior gymnast taking silver AA at the 2014 junior Challenge Cup. In 2015, she placed 9th in her first year in the senior ranks. In the same year, she also placed 2nd AA and on bars at the Scottish Senior Championships, as well as being selected for the Northern European Championships where she helped the Scottish team to 4th place.

At the beginning of 2016, Isabella had placed 4th AA at the Scottish Championships, as well as sharing gold on bars with Cara Kennedy, and taking bronze on floor. Later in the year, she entered the Challenge Cup once again, this time she became AA champion, and in doing so qualified as a senior elite gymnast to the British Championships.

In 2017, Isabella placed 4th AA at the senior Scottish Championships, this time she took the bars title outright, and she again took the bronze on floor. In her first senior British Championships, she finished 14th AA.
Later in the year Isabella was selected to represent Scotland at the Northern European Championships where she helped her team to the bronze medal, and placed 7th on beam.

Congratulations to Isabella on her selection, and good luck!

Shannon Archer 

Age: 19
Club: City of Glasgow
Coaches: Sandra Stevenson, Rod and Pauline Smith

Shannon Archer was selected to compete for Great Britain twice back in 2011 as an Espoir. She won gold with the team, and gold AA in a friendly against Sweeden, then bronze with the team against Italy, France, Germany and Switzerland.
In the same year, Shannon won silver on floor at the British Espoir Championships, was selected for GB Potential Squad, and represented Scotland at the School Games taking bronze with the team, placing 4th AA, and 4th on bars and floor in apparatus finals.

A long long battle with injury followed meaning Shannon missed out on making her mark as a junior, and first year senior. In 2015 Shannon placed 4th AA at the Scottish Senior Championships, as well as winning silver on floor. At the Northern European Championships she placed 4th with the Scottish team, and 7th on vault.
In 2016, Shannon took bronze AA at the Scottish Championships as well as silver on vault and beam, and gold on floor. At International Gymnix, Cara competed in the Challenge category, made the vault final, and took the silver medal. Shannon finished 11th AA at the Senior British, making vault and beam finals where she finished 5th and 6th respectively. Shannon also competed for Scotland once more at the Northern European Championships where she placed 5th with the team, then 7th on vault, and 4th in floor finals.

In 2017, Shannon took the Senior Scottish AA title, as well as gold on vault, beam and floor. At the British she placed 13th AA, making the vault final where she finished 5th. Shannon was also part of the Scottish team to take bronze at the Northern European Championships, making the vault final where she placed 4th.

Congratulations to Shannon on her selection, and good luck!

Sofia Ramzan

Age:17
Club: Dundee
Coach: Bea Peterson

Sofia turned senior in 2016, and took silver AA at the Scottish Championships, as well as bronze on bars and beam. She finished 17th AA at the British Championships, and later in the year was selected to represent Scotland at the Northern European Championships where she helped the team to 5th place.

In 2017, Sofia took silver AA once more at the Scottish Championships, and a further two silvers on bars and beam. At the British she had an even better result than the year before, finishing in 12th place.

Toward the end of 2017, Sofia represented Scotland at the Malar Cup in Sweeden where she helped the team to bronze, took AA silver, bronze on bars, and silver on floor. At the Stormarn Cup in Hamburg, Sofia experienced further success with bronze on vault, and gold on beam.

Congratulations to Sofia on her selection, and good luck!

Ellie Russell 

Age: 15
Club: West Lothian
Coach: Sandy Richardson

Ellie Russell is added to the Commonwealth Games team after a strong showing at the Scottish Championships. Her addition to the team means that Scotland will now send a full contingent of WAG gymnasts. Ellie is a new senior, so a huge jump up for her at just 15. She was the 2016 and 2017 Scottish AA junior champion, then marked her first senior competition finishing 4th AA, and taking vault gold, as well as silvers on bars and beam.

Ellie represented Scotland at the 2016 Celtic Cup where she helped the team to gold, including finishing 4th on bars, and 5th on floor. In the same year she finished third at Gordon Foster with her West Lothian team, as well as being awarded the third highest vault score. In 2016 Ellie also represented Scotland at the School Games helping her team to bronze.

In 2017 Ellie finished 21st at the Junior British, making both floor and vault final where she finished 6th then 5th.

Congratulations to Ellie on her selection, and good luck!