HIGH flying acro-gymnast Jonny Henderson has won three gold medals while representing Great Britain on the world stage.

The Hexham teenager was part of a male quartet which excelled at the Acrobatic Gymnastics Pan American Club Cup, in Monterrey, Mexico.

Jonny (14) and his teammates Aaron Greally (16), Marcus Winship (16) and Sam Stafford (17), were successful in the 12-18 age category.

And they were part of the Great Britain team which returned home with a superb haul of 23 medals after three days of competitive action.

Jonny and the other members of the quartet are all members of the Deerness Gymnastics Academy, at Ushaw Moor in County Durham.

They impressed judges with a mesmerising dynamic routine on day one, and followed it up with a balance routine on day two, receiving a gold medal for each routine.

On day three, the boys added their third medal of the championships with gold in their combined final.

To crown a glittering end to an outstanding competition, the boys were asked to perform their dynamic routine at the closing ceremony of the prestigious event.

Jonny’s proud mum Lorna said: “The boys are an inspiration to us all, especially to their friends and families. They prepared so well for this moment, never giving up on their courage to win and they enjoyed every second of representing their country.”

It has been a memorable year for Jonny and his teammates. In July, they gained silver medals at the British Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool.

It came two months after they won the won the Acro English Championship, in Newton Aycliffe.

The quartet had to work extra hard to make their self-funded trip to Mexico happen. In addition to their rigorous training programme, they carried out a range of fund-raising activities.

Last year, Jonny received a grant from Sport Tynedale to cover the basic essentials of the costs of competition. The voluntary-led organisation provides financial support for sports men and women to develop their skills at county level or higher.

This year’s Sport Tynedale Awards will take place on Sunday, December 15 at Hexham’s Wentworth Leisure Centre.