WATCH: ‘Heartbroken’ young Highland gymnasts race against time to keep beloved Easter Ross training facility
A BID to save Fyrish Gymnastics Club, which caters for more than 700 young people in and around Ross-shire has been stepped up.
The club originally hoped to purchase the former call centre building which it currently leases in Alness from BT for around £150,000, but the asking price has since skyrocketed to £400,000.
Fyrish Gymnastics Club in Alness has become a second home to hundreds of aspiring gymnasts with some training up to 12 hours per week. The club also employs around 10 people and is benefiting from many more volunteers.
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A mum of two young gymnasts, Kirsty McTaggart, has been fundraising for the cause.
She said: “We travel to Alness and we’re here five days a week for my girls training.
“These girls have nowhere else to go if this place closes. Inverness is full and there isn’t anywhere else. This is all we have, so it’s a lifeline for my girls.
“They absolutely love being here.”
Many parents have also chipped into the fundraising since the shock revelation of the premises being put on the market and the Highland community has worked tirelessly to help it secure its premises.
However, some parents who travel from further afield are concerned that their children will miss out if the building isn’t saved.
A number of Inverness-shire based gymnastic clubs have a waiting list of up to 24 months.
Manager of the club, Val Houston, is increasingly worried about the potential loss they could face during this uncertain time.
She said: “It took us so long to find a building, so now that we have got it set up, we just don’t want to lose it.
“We are doing a lot of fundraising, but it’s a drop in the ocean to what we need.
“It’s been really stressful. It’s stressful for the staff and the parents, but hopefully we can make it work and someone can help us out along the way.”
One of the club's budding gymnast’s, Harper (9), from Inverness said: “If I didn’t get to come here anymore I would feel sad and I would be heartbroken because I wouldn’t find anywhere else to go that’s like this place.”
The club are now in an uneasy state of limbo as a buyer could swoop in and purchase the facility at any moment.
