Beth Tweddle talks to the Junior School about gymnastics and being an Olympic medal winner

We were delighted to welcome the World and Olympian medal winner, Beth Tweddle MBE to the Junior School this morning (5 February 2025) to inspire us as only a medal winner can!

Her one aim was to win an Olympic medal, having decided that gymnastics was the sport for her at the age of seven.

After explaining her passion for gymnastics – “I’m addicted to it. It is in my blood.” – she engaged the captivated girls in a discussion about why we do physical activity and what are the benefits.

She described the four pieces of apparatus with such familiarity and fondness that we could sense the effort, the determination and the individuality behind each routine.

The vault – a powerful one, with its big run up before being catapulted into the air; the uneven bars, her favourite, is enjoyable, creative and inventive; the floor, where personality, music choice and audience interaction play a big part, to the nerve-racking 10cm-wide beam which needed a lot of work with her coach to build up her confidence.

She also gave us all two salient pieces of advice:

“To always have a go at something.“

 

“To understand that mistakes are our friends, because we can learn a lot from our friends, and we can learn a lot from our mistakes.”

Awarded an MBE for services to gymnastics, Beth is very active in encouraging young children to try out new activities, whether it be hockey, ballet, horse riding – she gave them all a try before focussing on gymnastics. With local opportunities in Cambridge to try gymnastics and ninja, (a fitness program that advances skills such as balance and agility), Beth suggests that like her, starting young is the best start to lifelong active health habits.

Chris Hald, Interim Head at the Junior School said:

“Hearing Beth's talk resonated with my inner Ninja – we all have an inner Ninja, which wants to jump, navigate obstacles and enjoy the “get-up-and-go. And as she pointed out, the additional personal skills that sport brings, such as teamwork, resilience and bravery are just as important.”