My Experience @ London Cup 2013 : London Sport Academy - London

Hello Everyone, 

Sharing with you my experience at London Cup held on 23rd and 24th of November 2013 conducted by London Sport Academy at Sarah Bonnell School Sports Hall, Stratford, London. There were competitors from Spain, Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Portugal, Bulgaria, Great Britain, Italy. We practiced hard for this competition and we also had a small internal competition week before to help us overcome our nervousness.

Meghana Gundlapally & Anna Bessanova
London 2013

22nd November 2013 : 

LSA Team at London Cup 2013 with
Anna Bessanova

For the past week we had been preparing ourselves for the competition. Kristina was getting the mats vacuumed and the new mats came in as well. On 22nd we had practice till 9 Pm that is half an hour more than the usual time. All of us were very delighted as tomorrow was our big day at London Cup 2013. 

At around 8 pm the competitors from the other countries started coming in to practice on the mats. Kristina also hired decorators for the event. 

Just before we left the famous gymnast Anna Bessonova (two times Silver medalist at Olympics) came along with her club to see the venue. All of us at practice got really excited to see her since she was the favorite gymnast for most of us. 

23rd November 2013 :

The Team

I woke-up at around at 9 am and left to the competition to encourage my friends since my competition was on 24th November. I reached  around 10:30 am by which time the competition had already started.  I went and sat with other friends from LSA and cheered for the team. At around Lunch Break with two of my friends , went over to McDonalds and had lunch. We also brought back some for Anastasia & Sasha... Me and my friends saw Anna Bessonova standing at the judges panel and went to her to ask for her autograph. It was an amazing experience of meeting and getting her autograph.  

I was at the venue till around 4 pm and returned home with my dad early so that I could prepare for my competition the next day. That night before sleeping I packed my bag and checked for all the things I needed and went to bed early. 

24th November 2013 (My Competition Day):

Today was the big day, as its my competition. I was really nervous when I woke up,  but forgot all about it and started getting ready for my competition. I was on,  to perform at 2 pm therefore, I left home at 10 am. I took the National Rail towards Startford and got off at MaryLand Station. 

By the time I reached the venue, the competition had started for a different category. Since I had lot of time left to perform, I was helping my friends who's competition was going on at that time. Later at around 12 o clock me and my friend went to Morrison Store to grab a light snack as we were not supposed to eat heavy lunch. After we came back we warmed-up a little bit and put on our leotards. 

Performing on Hoop

Finally the time had come for my first performance with Hoop. At first I was really jittery but after going onto the floor I forgot about everything else only concentrated on performing well. When I finished my routine I was really happy with the way I performed. In the last catch instead of doing three turns, I did only two turns and a roll even-though I never practiced it I still got the catch. I was really happy with my performance. 

Performing with Ribbon

My next performance was Ribbon after an hour. Within that Hour I set my hair and makeup and practiced my routine really well. This time when I was doing my routine, Kristina was there with me before I stepped on to the arena. When the music started I was kind of confused they played my old music but I did not stop and continued with same music. Even in ribbon I did not miss any catches and everything went nicely as planned. 

After I came out of arena Kristina commented "Maladiats" means "Very Good" in Russian language. I was really relieved after I finished my performance since I could go and get myself something to eat. After having my food went and sat near the judges panel to collect the forms for totaling the scores. This was the first time I ever did it and it was a good experience. 

Meghana with Bronze
at London Cup 2013

After all the competitive performances were over we had a small performance from Russian Club. After which the presentation ceremony started. I was really happy when they called my name for 3rd position(Bronze) in Hoop. And one's who did not get any medal  were given small prizes . After the presentation ceremony was over, the LSA team got a photograph with Anna Bessanoma. After which I got a picture of Anna and myself along with my medal. 

Once Everything was over, we started to roll the mats and cleared away all the mess. Then we left for Mcdonals for Dinner. But going half way I realized to get my leotards from the venue. I ran back to get them. After reaching the school, I forgot my ribbon stick as well. I got both of my stuff and was coming out someone told me that Anastasia lost her wallet, but it turns out, that it was kristina who found and kept in safe hands. We went over for dinner and started homeward. After reaching stratford they said , theire is a delay for the train to come.  By the time we reached home it was 11:45 pm so therefore just washed my face and undid my hair and went to bed. 

This was one of my best experiences in competition since I got to meet my favorite gymnast and also won a medal after competing with  other countries in an international competition. 

What Learnt this time: 

- Before leaving the venue make sure you have all your stuff 

Thank you for reading and see you after my next competition......

My Bronze @ Bath Open Championships 14th July 2013, United Kingdom

I am back again to tell you about the Bronze Medal I got at the Bath Open Championships at University of Bath, UK on 14th July 2013. This is the 8 year of Bath cup and most of the Gymnastic Clubs in UK compete here.  

Saturday - 13th July 2013:

Thank you Uma Aunty for support

Today, I woke-up at 8 am and started to pack our bags and food that we needed for the day. All the preparation took about 2 hours. At around 10:45 am we started to go to Reading from there we were to go for competition the next day. Our plan was to go to Ealing Broadway and then to Reading. We reached Startford to take the overground train to  Wilsdon Junction since the train to Ealing Broadway was not due until next one hour. We thought we could take an other train and change at Wilsdon Junction. On our way the train had some technical problems therefore the overground agency had to stop at  Camden Road Station to get the train repaired. All the doors were closed and it was the hottest day of UK with 31 degrees, Since the train was air-conditioned we could not open the windows and the the A/C was switched-off with hundreds of people inside. A couple of people started to press the emergency alarms due to the difficulty in breathing and few were almost fainting. Finally, it started to move after few minutes, Since, the train's technical fault could not be repaired they had to terminate the train at the next stop. We took the next train which was for clapham junction. But this train was converted as a fast train to clapham junction from Wilsdon Junction. Therefore, we took other train to from Wilsdon Junction to Shephard Bush. From Shephard Bush we got Central Line Train to Ealing Broadway.  From Ealing Broadway we went to Reading by the First Great Western Train. 

At Reading Uma Aunty came to pick us up from the Station. That Evening we went to the town centre to pickup some stuff for the competition the next day.

Sunday - 14th July 2013:

All Set for my First Performance @ Bath Cup

Today I woke up at 6 am and did some Yoga, got ready and started by Car to BATH. It was a 1 hour 30 minutes drive from Reading. When we got to the Bath University, it took us some time to find the Venue. After going to the sports hall I started to do my Warm-Up just when Kristina, Natasha, Anastesia and Arina from LSA arrived. Anstesia did my makeup and Natasha quickly helped me in making my hair set for the competition. I changed into my Leotard and got ready for the March on.

My Supporting Team at the Competition
after my performance with
Arina, Anstesia, Natasha

I was competing in Intermediate Level in Juniors. There were 25 competitors in my category. My sequence number to perform for the competition was 13th member. The order in which I was performing with the apparatus was Hoop, Ball, Clubs and finally Ribbon.

By the time I finished my last apparatus it was 1:30 pm. After I finished I went to cafeteria to get some thing to eat, since I did not eat much in the morning. Then at around 2:30 pm Milana (LSA team member - Elite under 11 category) arrived and her performance started after 3 pm.  So, I sat in the audience along with the other LSA team to cheer her.

Meghana Reddy Gundlapally, Rhythmic Gymnastics, Bronze Medal at Bath Open Championships, University of Bath, UK

The presentation ceremony took place at 6 pm. Before the presentation there was a show put-up by Gymnasts from City of Bath. I was very happy when my name was called-out for 3rd Place in Hoop. That was the apparatus that I got medal. The presentation ceremony was really long since there were a lot of Gymnasts competing. The presentation was over by 7 pm. After the presentation we took taxi to the Bath Spa Station and started back home at half past 7 by Train.

It was really late by the time we got home and also we were really tired so we went to straight to bed.

Learning :

• Working Hard to Prepare 
• Focusing on Improving my self

Thank you all for reading and hope you will like it.... See you next time....

My Experience @ Rose Cup 2013 - United Kingdom

Rose Cup, 2013

Saturday

It was at around 9 o clock in the evening we started to Kristina's House. After reaching there I realised that I forgot my Leotard for the Competition. Kristina said that was not a problem since Mom and Dad were coming the next day for the competition. However, she told me for my next competition to make a list of things that are necessary and keep ticking them off as I pack them.

We say a part of the movie along with Anasthijia, Kristina, Anna and few others that night. We also played with Kristina's kittens and went to bed at around 10:30 pm. That Night I could not sleep properly since I was excited for my competition as it was the first one I was playing in London.

Sunday

We Woke up at 5:30 am and got ready. For Break Fast Kristina asked us to choose between Bread & Butter, Cereles & Milk(C&M).  Since, I did not like the C&M, I choose Bread & Butter. We started from the house at 7 am and stopped at the Gas Station for refueling our vehicle and then we started towards NorthomptonShaire.  It was a 2 hours Journey to reach the venue. By the time we reached  the orientation &  the march on started for my group. So, I had to change into my Leotard and start my warm-up. I was upset on missing the orientation since it was a most important part of the competition. For us to see what type of floor it is and how smooth or rough it was for the pivots. In this competition I was using only my Ribbon.

During my competition I made a few mistakes :  missed my risk, did not finish my last element since the music was not enough. This was because I was holding my previous balances more than required time.

Finally, I stood 4th in the group. Kristina told me that without my above mistakes I would have could have got 2nd Place. She told me that its okay for now, next time onwards not to repeat my mistakes.

My Learnings:

- Making a Checklist for Competition
- Time consciousness

Thank you for reading. Stay Tuned for more of my experience sharing...

My Experience @ Italy competitions 22nd June 2013

III INTERNATIONAL RHYTHMIC GYMNASTICS COMPETITION, APRILIA , ITALY

Day 1 : Friday, 21st June 2013 

Meghana & Anastasia on board Alitalia Aircarft

It was early morning on Friday the 21th . All of us {gymnasts Anastasia,Katrina,Ella,Dior, milana,Anna, Julia and me meghana) , coaches ( Kristina,Anastasia Harold,jana)} were to assemble at London heathrow at 4 am at terminal 3.When we were checking in Anna got to know that her visa was going to get over soon so that is why she had to go back and could not come with us.

In the flight i was sitting next to nastya. There was nothing much to do in the flight so i just went to sleep since we were going to travel all day seeing places in Rome.

Meghana @ Roman Colosseum, Roma 

After getting down we got our luggage and changed our clothes since it was very hot in Italy.From the airport we took a train to roma terminus.At roma terminus we left all our luggage and went to find McDonald so we could have our lunch.We got happy meals for the gymnasts and the coaches got what they want. After lunch we set of to see the Roman Colosseum,and a few other places nearby.

By evening we got our luggage and took a train towards aprillia. The first train we got was the wrong one so  we got of at a station and took the right one.

London Sport Academy Team

When we got to aprillia the families we were staying with had already come to receive us.At first i was going to go alone but at the last moment Kristina sent milana with me.At first it was difficult to understand what the were talking since no one knew English and we did not know Italian. When we got to the house we were staying we were dumb struck since there house was very big.They all were very sweet they helped us feel like at home.That night we had to go to bed early since we had our competitions the next day.

Preparations

Day - 2 : Saturday,  22nd June 2013

We were supposed to be at the venue by 8 am and since the venue was near to our house we woke up at 7 am and left by forty five minutes past seven . Milana and my self were one of the first ones to be there.Soon every one started to come and started to practice on the floor .When all the Judges came the march on started . There were three countries-Israel,Great Britain,Italy.

What we Earned

The competition had gone quite well ,everyone on the team had won a medal.3 gold,and four bronze. I was really happy that i got third place . This was my first international medal.

Meghana with Bronze

In the evening there was the gala , we all were going to do something in the gala but we did not know about it until we reached the venue. Kristina got mad at us that we did not bring our leotards so she asked us to go back and get the leotards. The gala was going on late night and by the time we reached home it was 10 pm in the night.  Me and Milana thought of seeing a movie since we did not have any competition tomorrow. But by the time i washed my hair and came Milana was tired and she fell asleep.  So, I switched off the computer and went to sleep. 

Day-3 : Sunday, 23rd June 2013 

Today, we were supposed to go to the beach.  so, we got all our stuff and left for the station at about 11 am.  After going to the station we had to wait for the train as it was due in 45 minutes. While we were waiting we played few games which Kristina showed us. Once we got into the train we had to sit in different seats, so we could not play.  It took us about 30 minutes to go to the beach. 

London Sport Academy @ Beach

After reaching the beach we found a place for keeping our stuff. We changed into our swim suits and put on the sun screen went into the water. After 30 minutes we came out had some fruits, took rest, played in the sand and again went back into the waters.  This went on till 4 pm in the evening. 

We started back at around 5 pm int he evening. But, before getting into the train we had out lunch at McDonald. After reaching Aprilia we went to the hotel were our coaches were staying, we washed out hair and left for Dinner at about 9 pm. For Dinner we had 5 types of Pizzas ordered.  When we were going back home the family with whom were staying got us ice creams with 3 scoops. That night we saw the movie Madagascar 3 on the laptop of Sara and went to bed. 

Day-4 : Monday, 24th June 2013 

Today, We took all our luggage and went to the Hotel where our coaches were staying at around 10 am in the morning. After leaving our luggage we went to the town center and played for some time in a small park. After that we went to have pizza for lunch. It was Julia's birthday,so we got her a small piece of cake and cut it to celebrate. At around 1 pm we left for Rome. Once at ROME we got our tickets for airport and got ourselves some ice creams. At the airport we were very early and we went to the wash rooms to fresh-up and were waiting for the check-in to start. While were waiting we played a few games. We finally went to checking ourselves at about 7 pm. 

After completing the the security check, we all went to the shop and bought few souvenirs. I got a calender book mark so that I could use it for my books. 

We got onto the plane at 9 pm and landed in London Heathrow at 11:30 pm. By the time our luggage and came out for Underground it was around 12 mid night.  We went to take the Underground, the last train had already left. So we had no other choice than to go by bus. It was 3 in the morning when I reached home. 

This was the end of our trip to Italy for the competition.  It was a real good experience getting to stay with Italian family for 3 days and to spend time together with all the gymnasts and coaches. 

My next post would be after the Bath Cup, London on 13th July 2013. Until then good bye. Thank you for reading my blog.