Wyndham Vale resident Grace Bowater has placed second at the national finals of the Bend The Air aerial, acrobatics and circus arts competition.
Held in Gold Coast from January 12-15, Ms Bowater said her initial reaction to her name being announced was an astonished ‘oh my God, no way’.
“I was extremely surprised, I was really unsure of whether I would place because you never know, [aerial] silks is such a dynamic sport in a way that everyone does it different,” she said.
The 21-year-old said she was grateful for the win, but Ms Bowater said it more important to her that I walked off stage feeling good.
“Before doing aerial silks I didn’t really have a lot of confidence in myself and my ability to do things,” she said.
“I’ve really found a lot of self confidence with this sport, it’s so important to trust yourself.”
Ms Bowater said she first became involved in the sport when she was gifted a lesson.
“My mum thought it would be funny to buy me a lesson as a joke because I’m afraid of heights,” she said.
“I have been doing circus, or aerial silks for seven years now.”
Ms Bowater is also an aerial silks coach, and hopes to continue teaching in the future.
Fatima Halloum
