Trampolining student wins scholarship

Sixteen year old Te Kura student Seth King-Wall has invested determination and commitment to win a Bay of Plenty scholarship to assist him with trampolining. 

Currently recuperating from a severe concussion, Seth is one of 14 young athletes (16-24 years) to win a Sport Bay of Plenty scholarship to assist in his trampolining endeavours.

‘Winning the Sport Bay of Plenty scholarship is an honour. It's rewarding to be acknowledged for all the time and effort my family and I have put in and the results I've achieved so far’, says Seth.

Seth holds trampolining titles for the New Zealand Junior International in 2009 and 2010 plus the New Zealand Secondary title in 2009, with a silver medal in 2010.  He was also selected for the New Zealand team to travel to the Indo-Pacific Championships in Japan in 2010, but unfortunately couldn’t attend due to lack of funding. 

Undertaking a heavy training schedule, Seth travels to Auckland up to three times each week from his home in Katikati. 

‘If I lived in Auckland I would be able to train most days, but Tauranga doesn't have a facility with a high enough roof stud for me to train in,’ describes Seth.

The family is committed to home schooling and Seth appreciates the flexibility that Te Kura offers so that he can better juggle travel and training times in his Year 13 school week.  He takes small breaks between subjects to work on conditioning and stretching and spends evenings and weekends catching up on school work if he’s not away training or competing.

Seth began his trampolining career after going to a home school class at a Tauranga gym club.  At a trampoline camp in Auckland one year he met NZ coach Gerry O’Brien, who still trains Seth today.

Seth is now training for the New Zealand National Championships, the Australian National Championships and the World Championships in England later this year.  While still young enough to compete in the junior grades he has elected to compete in the senior open grades this year.