Ethan McGuinness- world champion, record breaker, and rising Aussie gymnastics star
with Matt“ Duck Man” Austin
Glenmore Park’ s Ethan McGuinness has once again put Australia on the world stage, taking out the gold medal in tumbling in Pamplona, and setting a new world record with an extraordinary score of 26.9.
Tumbling is judged by six execution judges who assess everything from leg form to technical precision. Only the middle two scores count, combined with the difficulty rating of the routine. Go too hard and risk poor execution; play it too
Ethan McGuinness celebrates his second gold medal. Credit: Australian Gymnastics. safe and your score drops. It’ s a delicate balance, and Ethan has mastered it. This win marks his second world championship gold, following his 2022 triumph where he set his first world record, scoring 28.9.
Ethan’ s journey began at just eight years old when, inspired by rugby league star Nathan Blacklock’ s famous backflip, he wanted to learn one himself. At the time he was juggling footy and tumbling, playing for Brothers and attending Xavier College in Llandilo. By 11, his coach encouraged him to commit more seriously, and with the support of his parents, he chose tumbling. In 2012 he went all in.
He began training at Kachan Tumbling shortly after it opened in 2009, when the school was operating out of Jamison High School. Three years later it moved to Windsor. Sixteen years on, Ethan is still with the same coach, a rarity in elite sport, and has watched five generations of tumblers come through.
Tumbling athletes often peak in their mid to late 20s, and the workload is immense. Ethan is fully self-funded, and until recently balanced 4am turf-farm shifts with afternoon training and evening coaching. A serious ankle injury last year forced him off his feet and out of work, but he found a new path through social media. Today he manages his own platforms, earning more than he did labouring, and reaching an incredible 1.2 million followers and up to 60 million monthly views, a leap from just 20,000 followers two years ago.
He has also worked with Unite the Dream, helping other athletes build opportunities through digital media.
Ethan is a standout at Face Off, a Denmarkbased event dubbed the“ X Games of gymnastics”, which draws 9,000 spectators with smoke, pyrotechnics and a format that rewards skill and creativity rather than penalties. He has placed second six times. Prize money is modest, € 1,500 for gold, but organisers hope to eventually increase winnings up to $ 50,000.
Next month, Ethan will compete in a league of the world’ s top eight tumbling and trampoline teams, alongside elite athletes and parkour specialists.
Looking forward, Ethan has his sights set on artistic gymnastics, with hopes of pushing for the next Olympic cycle. Artistic gymnastics receives Australian Sports Commission funding, a major incentive for an athlete who currently
Ethan McGuinness with his gold medal winning tumble.
finances his own journey. He has even learnt Russian to better communicate with international coaches and training partners and plans to take it up again. Ethan is now actively seeking sponsorships and commercial partners to help support his career. He expresses heartfelt thanks to his parents, coach, physio, and sponsors Vuly Play and Athlite.
He also hopes to learn more about sports grants available to non-Olympic or self-funded athletes, an area where support is often limited despite Australia’ s strong gymnastics talent.
Legends Seniors PGA lights up Richmond Golf Club
with Matt“ Duck Man” Austin
Richmond Golf Club once again provided a stunning backdrop for the Sharp EIT Solutions Australian PGA Seniors Championship, held from 6 – 9 November. The tournament teed off with Thursday’ s popular Pro-Am, which drew a strong turnout of local golfers and businesses eager to share the fairways with legends of the Australasian PGA Tour.
Several players have also featured on the US, European and Asian circuits, giving the community a rare chance to play alongside true greats. The course, often described as tight but fair, rewarded anyone who kept it straight.
The main championship began on Friday at 8am, with Nigel Lane setting the early pace. His superb five-under opening round put him narrowly ahead of David Brandson, Jason Norris, Brad Burns and Matthew Rogers, who were all one shot back. A talented chasing pack including Nathan Green, Brendan Jones, John Senden, Euan Walters, Grahame Stinson and Marcus Cain sat just behind on three under.
The field of 108 was stacked with past champions and fan favourites, from
the ever-popular Peter Lonard and Peter Senior to Terry Price, defending champion André Stolz and even former V8 Supercars driver Tomas Mezera. As a broadcaster with Pulse FM 89.9, it felt like being a kid in a lolly shop seeing so many heroes up close.
By day two, the competition and the weather had ramped up. Rising heat brought swirling winds and distant lightning, even sending the course marshal’ s marquee tumbling down the fairway like a scene from The Wizard of Oz!
But nothing overshadowed the quality of play. Brendan Jones surged with a fourunder round to finish the day at seven under, joining Jason Norris and David McKenzie in a three-way share of the lead. Murray Lott, Nathan Green and David Brandson also muscled their way into contention ahead of what promised to be a dramatic final round.
And dramatic it was. With as many as fourteen players still in the hunt, the final day delivered a scriptwriter’ s dream. The 1.35pm final group- Jones, McKenzie and Norris, had the advantage of seeing how the course was playing late in the day, but the veterans chasing them came out firing. Peter Lonard’ s eagle on the 8th rocketed him into the mix and sent a ripple through the field. Pressure mounted and even seasoned pros missed putts they’ d usually nail.
As the leaders approached the 18th, Lonard was already in the clubhouse at nine under, setting a tough target. Brendan Jones couldn’ t quite claw back a shot, leaving the door open for Norris, who produced a sensational approach to land his third shot just a foot from the cup. He rolled in the par to seal the championship his second title in three years with calm authority.
A thrilling finish to a world-class week of golf at Richmond Golf Club, and a well-deserved victory
Jason Norris wins the Sharp EIT Solutions PGA Seniors Championship 2025. Credit: PGA of Australia.
for Jason Norris, the 2025 Australian PGA Seniors Champion.
THE HAWKESBURY INDEPENDENT theindependentmagazine. com. au ISSUE 187 // DECEMBER 2025 37 MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY HOLIDAYS!