White Hills Primary School team wows judges at Australian Schoolaerobics championships

By Raelee Tuckerman
Updated November 7 2012 - 3:50am, first published August 31 2010 - 11:33am
silver medallists:  White Hills Primary School teammates Amber McLeod, Latesha McDonell, Ebony May, Alannah Sheridan, Hayley Burton,   Nicole Erwin and Bridie Kent starred at the Australian Schoolaerobics championships in Brisbane. Picture: BILL CONROY
silver medallists: White Hills Primary School teammates Amber McLeod, Latesha McDonell, Ebony May, Alannah Sheridan, Hayley Burton, Nicole Erwin and Bridie Kent starred at the Australian Schoolaerobics championships in Brisbane. Picture: BILL CONROY

A SUPER-FIT group of Bendigo schoolgirls have jumped, stretched and high-kicked their way to silver medals at the Australian Schoolaerobics championships in Brisbane.The White Hills Primary School team saved their best for last, producing a brilliant performance that wowed the judges in the primary novice section of the national final.Known as the Liquefiers, the girls choreographed their own routine for the competition, mixing dance moves with high-energy aerobics skills to the tune of Differently, by Cassie Davis.“They just did an amazing job,” coach and teacher Meagan Smith said. “They were so thrilled.”The grade sixers - Nicole Erwin, Amber McLeod, Hayley Burton, Ebony May, Bridie Kent, Latesha McDonnell and Alannah Sheridan - had spent 10 months preparing for the event, training several times a week and even on weekends.The team had to overcome a musical hitch in their heat and several injuries leading up to the Queensland trip to earn their status as one of the best aerobics teams in the country.They qualified for the event after finishing third at their regional heat in Geelong - after the music stopped before the end of their routine - and second at the state final in Melbourne.One team member trained with a broken arm and another battled a persistent knee injury as they prepared for Brisbane.In the end, just 0.14 marks separated the second-placed Liquefiers and the team that took home the gold medal. “Proud doesn’t quite explain how we were feeling afterwards - we were on a big high and there was a lot of screaming and running around.Ms Smith said the result had boosted interest in the school’s aerobics program, which this year involved 20 students.She praised two other teams from White Hills who made it through to the state finals, and thanked everyone involved in raising about $3000 that helped go towards the cost of the interstate trip.“There has been a lot of teamwork, hard work and persistence involved,” she said.“Going to states and nationals was great for our girls to be able to see the upper echelon of aerobics, and what some of those competitors could do was amazing.”

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