The Barr sisters – Isla and Mali – teamed up to win gold in the under-13 women’s synchronised jump.

In the individual events, Isla took out the under-13 women’s division with an impressive score of 91.5 – almost five points clear of second place.

Mali was hot on her older sister’s heels, just 2.2 points behind in second place until her final pass – but she landed on the safety area and finished in ninth place.

Their brother Aubrey, aged eight, was the youngest member of the NSW team.

He placed 13th in the under-11 men’s division, and also competed in the under-13s synchro with Myles O’Neill from Sydney, placing 15th.

Kayla Germyn won gold in the under-11 women’s division, and placed seventh in the synchro (with Sydney athlete Maddison Rodd).

Jack Allen won two gold medals – one in the under-17 men’s individual jump and the other in the synchro (with Michael Heffernan from Gosford).

Jack is from East Maitland and travels to Cessnock six days a week to train with the PCYC squad, which is coached by former European silver medallist Dzmitry Shostau.

Shostau, a former circus performer from Belarus, said he was proud of his squad’s effort.

“They have done a good job,” he said.

The Barrs’ mother Lisa said the kids realise how fortunate they are to have a coach of Shostau’s calibre.

“They are so lucky to have a coach who is so dedicated,” she said.

“The physical and mental preparation is amazing.”

The Australian Gymnastics Championships were held at Melbourne’s Hisense Arena from May 23 to June 4.

More than 1400 athletes performed over 6000 routines across 12 days of competition.

The Cessnock athletes went into a three-day camp with their NSW teammates as part of the experience.

They also had the exciting opportunity to see Australia’s top gymnasts in action, as this year’s championships served as the final selection event for the Rio Olympic Games.

The NSW team topped the medal tally with 93 gold, 94 silver and 79 bronze medals.