Ex-child gymnast crowned British champion - 30 years after winning gold
- 8 months ago
A former child gymnast has been crowned a British champion - 30 years after she clinched her last gold medal.
Prize-winning Suzy Kerfoot, 44 stopped competing in the sport during her late teens but said the “smell of the gym” had tempted her back decades later.
The beauty therapist spent her youth pursuing the discipline where participants are judged on their vault, bars, beam and floor routines and was Kent under 15s champion.
And she said the idea of returning to the sport had 'never crossed her mind' until she started taking her two daughters to classes as she was approaching 40.
Suzy went on to grab two bronzes in her age group in 2019 and 2022, as her coaches helped her to rediscover her form in the elite sport.
But she said it was “emotional” when she was finally crowned over 45s intermediate British gymnastics champion in August this year.
Suzy said: “When I won gold, it was a feeling like I’ve not had before.
“It was very, very emotional. I was so happy. I just cried. I didn’t really think that was ever an option for me - to win.
“It had never crossed my mind about going back. I always spoke about it. Everybody knew that I did gymnastics, but I’d never considered doing it again.
“But when I took my kids to gymnastics, I found out there was an adult class. I just thought. ‘I want to give it a go’ - and it turned out I could still do it.”
Suzy, originally from Kent but now living in Sheffield, South Yorks., was three when began going to gymnastics classes, following in the footsteps of her older sister.
And it didn't take long before she showed a flare for the sport - saying her leotard felt like a superhero “disguise” that allowed her to embrace the hobby.
She hit her heights at 15 when she became Kent champion - with footage from the time showing how her incredible floor routine helped her bag the win.
But Suzy stopped competing soon after and finally gave up at the age of 19.
It was only when her kids, Jessica, 13, and Elsie, ten, began gymnastics classes that she thought about taking the sport up again - at the age of 39.
She said: “The requirements of your training mean you’ve got to be there at certain times, and when I got a job, I just couldn’t commit to that.
“I was about 19 when I stopped, and then I literally didn’t do any gymnastics at all until just before my 40th birthday when I started the adult classes.
“The smell of the gym overall brought back that familiar feeling for me - the chalk in the air, the leather on the beam.
“And as soon as I smelled it and walked in there, I got that adrenaline rush. So when they said they did adult classes, I didn’t even have to think twice about it.”
Suzy, who owns Aspects of Beauty, in Sheffield, kept up her fitness during her 20s and 30s but said getting back into gymnastics was still a big physical challenge.
She went on: “As soon as I got there, my muscle memory took over. However, I feel it in every single part of my body now. I have to warm up for a long time.
“The risk of injury is always on my mind, but I only do things that I know I can do."
Suzy said her coach at High Green Gymnastics Academy, in Sheffield, had started to put her into British competitions from 2019 onwards.
And when she moved up an age category this year to the over 45s, she felt she had her best possible chance of taking home a gold medal.
She finally clinched the top medal on August 6 after getting the highest overall score in the vault, bars, beam and floor routines.
And following her success, she encouraged others to get involved even if they had no past experience in gymnastics.
She said: “There’s a girl in our team that competed, and she’d never competed in gymnastics before.
“So for adults, if they didn’t do it as a kid or just did it at school and enjoyed it, they can still start again and they can still compete.
“I’m going to keep going and keep competing.
"I’m going to see what my body will let me do. But I’m not going to overdo it. I’m self-employed, so I can’t go around hurting myself.
“If it leads to medals, that’s great, but the most important thing is I’m keeping active and enjoying it.”
Prize-winning Suzy Kerfoot, 44 stopped competing in the sport during her late teens but said the “smell of the gym” had tempted her back decades later.
The beauty therapist spent her youth pursuing the discipline where participants are judged on their vault, bars, beam and floor routines and was Kent under 15s champion.
And she said the idea of returning to the sport had 'never crossed her mind' until she started taking her two daughters to classes as she was approaching 40.
Suzy went on to grab two bronzes in her age group in 2019 and 2022, as her coaches helped her to rediscover her form in the elite sport.
But she said it was “emotional” when she was finally crowned over 45s intermediate British gymnastics champion in August this year.
Suzy said: “When I won gold, it was a feeling like I’ve not had before.
“It was very, very emotional. I was so happy. I just cried. I didn’t really think that was ever an option for me - to win.
“It had never crossed my mind about going back. I always spoke about it. Everybody knew that I did gymnastics, but I’d never considered doing it again.
“But when I took my kids to gymnastics, I found out there was an adult class. I just thought. ‘I want to give it a go’ - and it turned out I could still do it.”
Suzy, originally from Kent but now living in Sheffield, South Yorks., was three when began going to gymnastics classes, following in the footsteps of her older sister.
And it didn't take long before she showed a flare for the sport - saying her leotard felt like a superhero “disguise” that allowed her to embrace the hobby.
She hit her heights at 15 when she became Kent champion - with footage from the time showing how her incredible floor routine helped her bag the win.
But Suzy stopped competing soon after and finally gave up at the age of 19.
It was only when her kids, Jessica, 13, and Elsie, ten, began gymnastics classes that she thought about taking the sport up again - at the age of 39.
She said: “The requirements of your training mean you’ve got to be there at certain times, and when I got a job, I just couldn’t commit to that.
“I was about 19 when I stopped, and then I literally didn’t do any gymnastics at all until just before my 40th birthday when I started the adult classes.
“The smell of the gym overall brought back that familiar feeling for me - the chalk in the air, the leather on the beam.
“And as soon as I smelled it and walked in there, I got that adrenaline rush. So when they said they did adult classes, I didn’t even have to think twice about it.”
Suzy, who owns Aspects of Beauty, in Sheffield, kept up her fitness during her 20s and 30s but said getting back into gymnastics was still a big physical challenge.
She went on: “As soon as I got there, my muscle memory took over. However, I feel it in every single part of my body now. I have to warm up for a long time.
“The risk of injury is always on my mind, but I only do things that I know I can do."
Suzy said her coach at High Green Gymnastics Academy, in Sheffield, had started to put her into British competitions from 2019 onwards.
And when she moved up an age category this year to the over 45s, she felt she had her best possible chance of taking home a gold medal.
She finally clinched the top medal on August 6 after getting the highest overall score in the vault, bars, beam and floor routines.
And following her success, she encouraged others to get involved even if they had no past experience in gymnastics.
She said: “There’s a girl in our team that competed, and she’d never competed in gymnastics before.
“So for adults, if they didn’t do it as a kid or just did it at school and enjoyed it, they can still start again and they can still compete.
“I’m going to keep going and keep competing.
"I’m going to see what my body will let me do. But I’m not going to overdo it. I’m self-employed, so I can’t go around hurting myself.
“If it leads to medals, that’s great, but the most important thing is I’m keeping active and enjoying it.”