Gymnasts and coaches from Richmond Gymnastics Association have been crowned British Acrobatic Performance Partnership of the Year 2026.

The award recognises the club's Senior Men's Group - Louis Alexander, Freddie Turner, Rex Booth and Samuel Ditchburn — whose creative and high-energy routines have captured attention on both the national and international stage.

The group, formed at the start of 2024, made an immediate impact by becoming Senior British Champions in their first season together. Later that year, they competed at the 2024 World Championships in their first major competition as Seniors.

Although a mistake in their Balance routine narrowly cost them a place in the finals, the experience proved a turning point.

In 2025, the Richmond quartet returned stronger, delivering consistent results at the highest level.

Their achievements included:

• Bronze at a World Cup event in Bulgaria
• Third place in Dynamic and second overall at the European Championships
• Gold at the British Championships
• Bronze at the World Games in China

Medals aside, the group have become widely recognised for their crowd-pleasing "Spiderman" routine.

The success has also seen Vencislav Genov and Melanie Sanders named Acrobatic Coaches of the Year.

advertisement

Sanders said: "On behalf of myself and Ventsi, we are delighted to receive this prestigious award from British Gymnastics. We are thrilled that our Senior Men's Group have been recognised as they are fantastic role models for the sport.

"It is their dedication, commitment, resilience and hard work that brought them their success, and we are honoured to have been part of the team that has supported them on their journey and to be recognised alongside them for this award."

Rex Booth added: "It is such a great honour to receive this award and I am so grateful for the recognition and support from British Gymnastics and the whole team.

"We have had an amazing year as a partnership and it has been such a great experience to achieve all our goals, all whilst just enjoying the sport that we love. I am so proud of what we have been able to achieve and it feels incredible to have our dreams become a reality."

The celebrations continue for the club, with several other Richmond gymnasts selected for England and Great Britain squads for 2026.

England squad:

• Phoebe & Bea – Pre-Youth Women's Pair

Great Britain squad:

• Louis & Leela – Senior Mixed Pair
• Christoph & Myla – Junior Mixed Pair
• Lily & Evie – Youth Women's Pair

To learn more about Richmond Gymnastics Association click here.

advertisement

READ MORE: Richmond restaurant closes temporarily for refurbishment.

We want to provide Richmond with more and more clickbait-free local news. To do that, we need a loyal newsletter following. Help us survive and sign up for our free weekly newsletter by clicking the link HERE.