At just nine years of age, Paytience Hesse is already a star of online videos showcasing her incredible acrobatic skills as she aims to become a world champion.
The youngster is the 2019 level 6 state and national champion and also holds the children's world record in the seven to nine-year-old category for the longest ring handstand — which she held for 29 seconds.
She has already doubled that time in training.
"It's from lots of hard work and training with awesome coaches," she said.
Kim Lacey, the owner and head coach at the Oak Flats Albion Park Gymnastics Club, said Paytience was something special.
"Paytience is what we call a diamond — you find a little kid like that once every blue moon, she's got the physical attributes and, of course, she's got the mental attributes."
Paytience attends school and trains five days a week.
"It's not easy for a little kid to train that many hours a week and still enjoy what she's doing and still be able to take on the corrections and things that you're teaching her," Ms Lacey said.
"If Paytience keeps at it, she will definitely be an Australian representative, and we're looking at that for 2022 anyway.
"She's on the right track at the moment."
Breeding champions from 'old cow shed'
Acrobatics is a growing sport in Australia, with new training clubs opening each year.
"We've been here since 1985," Ms Lacey said. "It's sort of an institution here, the old cow shed, we've seen many kids go through.
"We're one of the forerunner clubs in Australia out of the old tin shed."
While acrobatics is not an Olympic sport, Ms Lacey said it "feeds into Cirque du Soleil", the French-Canadian circus that features world-class displays of theatre and human strength.
In the meantime, Paytience and her peers at the club remain in training for the biennial world championships.
Her coach hopes Paytience will be a member of the national team for the 2022 event.
"Every world championships for the last 20 years, we've had kids represent Australia and compete," Ms Lacey said.
"I say it's because of where we come from; we actually don't have a full floor, and I'd say every single person competing at the world championships would have a full floor."
She said despite the modest training facilities, her students did not complain.
"They're good country kids and they work hard and they don't make excuses, and I think because of that we succeed at national championships."
