Local twirler places in the top five at International Baton Twirling Federation’s World Championships

Press release from Turner family

LIVERPOOL, England – Gainesville resident Lorelei Turner, 11, recently traveled to Liverpool, England for ten days to compete at the International Baton Twirling Federation’s World Championships and Nations Cup.  She competed individually and with her team. 

To be able to make the USA Twirling Team, she had to qualify at Nationals at Notre Dame University the year prior. She spent the last year practicing anywhere from two hours a day up to eight hours a day in the summer. As one of the youngest twirlers to compete at the World Championships at 11 years of age but competing in the 12-14 category, she held her own and placed 4^th in Artistic Twirl at Nations Cup and 5^th in x-strut at the World Championships. 

Lorelei has been twirling since she was three years old and also dances at Pofahl Studios. It was an honor to be amongst the top ten in the world, much less the top five. She was able to meet and be inspired by twirlers all around the world, including but not limited to Japan, Norway, England, Canada, and Spain. 

When asked how she felt about competing, Lorelei said, “The first ten seconds of my first routine were the scariest of my life, but then I calmed, and it felt amazing to be performing at that level. It was an honor.” Lorelei is coached individually by Barb Neely from West Virginia along with Deb Herbster from North Carolina, and her team coach is June Stoeber from Florida.

During the World team competition, she remained the youngest team member and helped her team secure two gold medals and one silver medal! She is coming home a two-time world champion! The sky is the limit for this beautiful young lady, and we cannot wait to see where her passion, dedication, and hard work take her next.