Teigan Lange doesn’t really feel pressure when it comes to the sport of tumbling.
That’s because it’s not only something that “keeps me motivated”, but also something she loves, the 17-year-old athlete told The Profile.
It was around seven years ago when the young athlete first “got hooked” on the sport, which is a gymnastics discipline made up of skills such as flips, twists and handsprings performed on a padded surface. But Teigan’s tumbling talent was unmistakable following a recent competition.
The airborne star, who is also a year-12 Hauraki Plains College student, competed at the Competitive Age Division Tumbling Competition on June 8 hosted by Hamilton City Gymnastics, where she landed a fifth place spot for the overall competition.
However, the routine had another twist.
Not only did Teigan make it into the top five, she also qualified to compete later this year at the 2025 New Zealand National Gymnastics Championships at Auckland Trusts Arena from September 23 to 27.
“I was shocked at first and then I realised that I had actually qualified which made me really happy.” But the road to the championships didn’t come without its challenges.
“To qualify for nationals you have to do eight flips down the mat which I achieved. It’s taken me nearly seven years to finally achieve eight flips,” she said.
One skill the young athlete had worked on for a couple of years, and mastered, was something called the twist: a combination of a back flip and spinning around at the same time, she said.
Her training sessions were at her gym, Thames Gymsports, on Tuesdays for 90 minutes, and Thursdays for 120 minutes, she said. “I do my normal gymnastics on the bars and then I do the tumbling. I also do conditioning, which is workouts to keep me fit which is really important for both but especially tumbling.”
But she didn’t just train herself. “I already coach normal gymnastics for ages five to eight and eight- to 10-year-olds in Thames and I’ve started to learn judging for tumbling via an online course,” she said.
It was clear Teigan was in it for the long haul.
“I’m going to keep tumbling and apply for a scholarship for a school in Denmark, it’s a gym that is mainly focused on tumbling along with your school work, so I could do my Level 3 if I was successful in gaining the scholarship that Gymnastics NZ offers,” she said.
Even though she didn’t currently have a role model in the sport, seeing other people do it inspired her to keep going and to improve, and the support of her parents was something she said she appreciated.
Teigan’s advice for other students who want to try tumbling was that it wouldn’t be easy.
“It can be mentally challenging. But it’s a lot of fun so give [it] a go.”
