BRIDGEPORT – The Wheeler Recreational Center in Bridgeport hosted the Level 5 and Level 6 Gymnastics State Championships on Saturday and Sunday, June 5 and 6, and several Newtown gymnasts used the opportunity to shine.

Kate Temple, 13, won a gold medal in the Level 6 competition while Kathy Wiener, Ellen Tabler and Evelyn Fahey all performed well in the Level 5 competition.

For Temple, an outstanding start in the floor exercises provided the impetus for the rest of her day. She scored an 8.8 there, which would be the highest score by any athlete in that event. A 9.125 (good for fourth) on the vault, though, caused her to slip a little in the standings.

But an 8.5 performance on the parallel bars and a strong 8.875 performance on the balance beam gave Temple the push she needed to grab the gold medal in both the balance beam and all-around.

Temple trains 12 to 15 hours a week at Gymnastics Revolution in Bethel.

“I knew Katie would be strong that day,” said coach Brian Bakalar. “She’s done more work than anyone could ask of her. I’m thrilled with her performance and with that of her team, but many challenges still lie ahead.”

Coach Bakalar was referring to a summer of training designed to move Temple to an even higher level of competition next season.

Temple is a seventh grader at the Newtown Middle School.

Gymnastics Revolution opened in late 2001, and has already been home to several state and regional champions – including Megan Zefting, Mollie Thode, Tia Chatterjee, Lizzie Morton, and Kristen Riffanacht.

Now Katie Temple joins her elite predecessors on a growing list of champions.

At the Level 5 competition, Wiener (who trains at Olympic Gymnastics) placed second in the vault and the all-around. Tabler (who trains at KineticKids) placed fifth in the floor exercises and 10th in the all-around. And Fahey (who also trains at Olympia Gymnastics) placed 14th on the parallel bars in the 11-year-old division.

More than 30 girls in each age group competed.