8-year-old Naples twins place in national gymnastics competition

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COLLIER COUNTY, Fla.- An 8-year-old Naples girl is a national champion in gymnastics. One of her toughest competitors, is also one of her biggest fans.

Eight-year-old twins Madison and Cameron Bates both competed in Las Vegas earlier this week. Madison came in first overall and Cameron third overall for the competition.

It may have been the last meets of the season, but both girls made it count.

“Cameron got third place and I got first place all around,” said Madison.

The girls competed in the 2015 AAU Gymnastics Age Group National Championships. They’re both state and regional champs who qualified for the top meet.

“In gymnastics they compete against each other which can be tough sometimes, and they are competitive with one another, but they’re also supportive of one another,” said their father Jon Bates.

They’re love for gymnastics started when they were just two years old.

“I was doing flips on the couch when I was three,” said Cameron.

They started competing at the age of five and now have national recognition three years later.

“They love it and that’s the most important thing to my wife and I,” said Bates.

This isn’t the last you’ll hear about these two. They both have huge goals for the future.

“Be a gymnastics coach or go to the Olympics,” said Cameron.

“They have dreams of Olympics one day so if that’s where they want to go, we’ll try to encourage that and support as best we can,” said Bates.

The girls will be training all summer long at a gymnastics camp. In the fall they’ll start competing at a higher level.

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