A JUNIOR Flagstone gymnast won the Men’s Artistic Junior Classic at the Gold Coast on Sunday.
Emmaus College student Dylan Parker’s achievement came after adopting an intense training regiment of 14.5 hours per week before and after school.
Parker trains with gymnasts who made the Commonwealth Games team earlier this year.
The 11-year-old gymnast placed first in floor and vault, second on pommel horse, parallel bars and high bar and third on rings.
Parker’s mother, Tanya Kendrick-Ward said her son was ambitious and had a bright future.
“One day his ultimate goal is to go to the Olympics and train with the Commonwealth Games boys,” she said.
“I am so proud of him, he is a very dedicated kid. They have to do a lot of strength and conditioning it is not an easy sport, especially at the elite level.”
Parker started gymnastics when he was eight and has soared up the ranks over the past three years.
Shortly after turning nine, Parker was selected to trial at the Gymnastics Queensland High Performance centre at Chandler and was contracted as an elite athlete.
In 2017, he placed third at the Queensland State Titles and won multiple apparatus places.
The Queensland State Titles are set to be held in September, and Parker is hoping to do two places better this year.
