Jazz hands and handstands have taken a group of girls to national cheerleading glory.

The 9 and 10 year-old girls from Fame All Stars UK won their category at the national championships despite it being their first appearance in the competition.

The event, Jamfest Europe, was held at the Echo Arena in Liverpool and saw teams from across the country, as well as teams from the continent, dancing it out in a range of categories.

This year is the 9 and 10 year old girls first season of competition and they won their event amid stiff competition.

Head coach Liz Gordon said: “It was literally amazing, it was incredible to see the whole development process.

“To watch them in training go from newbies and growing their skills from where we started to here watching it being performed was great, there couldn’t have been a prouder moment for me.

“The girls gave it their all and the look on their face when they won was priceless. Their coaches Marcie Da Silva and Kab Nauthoo have been fabulous.”

The All Stars train at Southgate College in High Street, Southgate, and coach a range of ages from 4 upwards.

They took a number of different age groups to the competition but it was the young ones who came out on top.

As well as winning their category at the nationals the girls also won the right to compete at the USA Jamfest this summer; one of the largest cheerleading competitions in the United States with 600 teams battling it out.

Ms Gordon added: “We’re definitely looking forward to competing in the states, it’s going to cost a lot of money but we will be pushing hard to raise the cash.”

Fame All Stars UK will be having try outs to add to their squad for the trip to America and welcome all ages and skill levels into their ranks, as Ms Gordon put it “Even if you can’t do a forward roll, we’ll teach you.”