THEY were rolling, jumping, springing, and tucking their way through the 1970s – the gymnasts on these pages were in the news for various reasons.

In 1975, four young ladies from Southampton Gymnastics Club were selected for training with the national squad.

Sarah Latham and Dolly Willis joined the under-13 squad, whilst Paula Longland and Jenny Krauklis the under-15s.

On November 1976, five Southampton gymnasts made their international debut.

Gary Burke the took on the Dutch in Holland with the British Under-15 team, whilst Kevin Furmage, Dolly Willis, Jane Moore and Mark Gibson represented England Schools in a triangular match against Wales and Scotland in Spennymoor.

That same month, two pupils from Blackfield County Junior School were chosen to represent the South in the National English Schools Gymnastics Championships.

Ian Shelley and Michael Walker were the two dedicated individuals selected.

The Southampton Club’s modern rhythmical gymnastics made a massive impact in the first British Championships for the new sport in December 1976.

Southampton’s senior team finished second, the juniors third, but the biggest achiever was Frances Newman who won the junior individual title.

The Southern Region team took the national age group championships by storm at the same event when they won medals in every team event.