THE Commonwealth Games, Queen’s Baton Relay visits Blaenau Gwent on May 24, and half of the Baton bearers will be Tredegar women.
The baton will be reaching the end of its 190,000km, 288 day trek around 70 nations of the world.
One of those bearers will be 11-year-old Naomi Jarman, a pupil at Georgetown Primary School, Tredegar.
Naomi started gymnastics at the age of six and was selected in the Welsh Development Squad aged eight, progressing through the grades and into the Elite Preparation Welsh Squad.
Competing at Level 3, she made the British finals representing Wales in Birmingham and representing Wales at the National Grade 7 in the British Finals, ranking 23rd in the UK.
Her gymnastics suffered a setback last year, after she broke two bones in her arm when she slammed into the bars. But after just two weeks, she was back in the gym doing conditioning training with her cast on.
Naomi’s favourite apparatus is the beam, one of the most technical and difficult of all the apparatus.
She trains five days a week and also loves art and her two cats Fudge and Bella.
She said: “I am excited about carrying the baton. I am a little bit nervous but very honoured to represent my sport.”
Her coach, Melissa Anderson added: “I am extremely proud of Naomi being selected to be part of the Queen’s Baton Relay. She is a fabulous role model for young people in the sport. Naomi works exceptionally hard and her efforts have been rewarded by being selected to represent Wales at the British Finals on more than one occasion.”
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