Reward for young athletes coming on in leaps and bounds

GYMNAST Shannon Archer and boxer Charlie Flynn have been named Commonwealth Games Scotland Athletes of the Month for June, winning £250 each towards training and competition costs.

For Archer, a 12-year-old from West Lothian, it was the most successful month of her career so far. She represented Great Britain for the first time, qualified for the floor finals at the British Championships, and also competed for Scotland in an international match in Madrid, where she won two gold medals and a silver.

She first tried out gymnastics at the age of four, and has never found a reason to transfer to another sport. "It's unique, compared to other sports", she said. "In other sports you don't get the variety that gymnastics has with all of the different apparatus. The floor is definitely my favourite - I really enjoy the freedom it gives me, and it's definitely where I perform best."

Like most young female gymnasts, Archer hopes to emulate the success of her heroine, current world and European champion Beth Tweddle. "She is amazing", she said. "To have been so successful for so long is not that common in our sport, and she's still going strong, which is amazing."

Both Archer and Flynn, the Western District 60kg champion, now hope to be selected for the Scotland team for the Commonwealth Youth Games in the Isle of Man in September. Scotland will have a team of six in each sport, plus eight in athletics, four in badminton, five cyclists, a squad of 12 for rugby sevens, and nine swimmers.

"The Commonwealth Youth Games provide an invaluable development opportunity for our younger athletes, exposing them to a multi-sport environment and giving them their first experience of Team Scotland and its ethos," Commonwealth Games Scotland chairman Michael Cavanagh said. "We have seen some fantastic performances since the selection period opened, and I would like to congratulate Shannon and Charlie for their achievements in June. I'd like to wish them the best of luck for the rest of the year and I hope to see them competing for Youth Team Scotland in the Isle of Man come September."

The Scottish team will be announced on 9 August, with the Games themselves taking place from 7 to 13 September.