Olympics delay provides rare opportunity for local gymnast in 2021 At first [driving] was definitely scarier than gymnastics. According to the USAG website and Chalkwarriors Twitter, Konnor is now trained by Valeri Liukin at WOGA. As recently as two weeks ago, it wasnt a given that McClain would even be ready for nationals. Then the injuries began piling up. Takahashis greatest success came in 2010, when he became the first Japanese man to win an Olympic figure skating medal (bronze) and a world title. Konnor's parents : r/Gymnastics - Reddit We dont know where Konnors journey will take her during the 2021 season, the 2024 season, and beyond, but we can be certain that wherever she goes, she will carve her own path and lead the way. Though nerve-wracking to compete as a senior, the joy of competition remained the same. Unlike most of the NBC gymnastics pieces from over the years, these episodes take a more serious angle. Instead, she performed wearing a patch with his initials on it, dedicating her performance to her biggest supporter. Required fields are marked *. I just know that., Shilese Jones Star Turn Puts Her In Pole Position Going Into Day 2 At Gymnastics Nationals, When School Let Out, These Three Star Gymnasts Resumed Their Quest To Be The Best, Juniors Dulcy Caylor, Tiana Sumanasekera Represent A Talented Next Generation Of U.S. Gymnasts. In March 2020, Reed died of a sudden cardiac issue at age 30. From Konnors perspective, though it may look effortless, thats not quite how it feels. At the 1968 Games, Boston broke his own Olympic record in qualifying by jumping 8.27 meters. She gets a 15.300. Devastated, McClain reached out to a friend, Tokyo 2020 Olympic all-around gold medallist Sunisa Lee, seeking comfort, advice, and guidance. Leanne Wong, who claimed silver in the all-around at the world championships last fall, overcame a foot injury to put together two graceful sets on bars and beam. Elite-level gymnastics. Then the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 were postponed a year, and a subsequent adjustment to the minimum-age requirement suddenly made her eligible. I've always gone to their house, and Konnor was just two years old, and her mom would say, Don't put your leotard on when Susan comes over. Id won a gold, silver and a bronze in that order. Did the inspiration for Payson Keelers plot line come from the Skinner family? Back to her original timeline, McClain was making progress and qualified for her first world championships team last fall. There McClain was on Sunday night during the final night of the 2022 championships, the talent that had always been apparent on full display, buoyed by a self-belief borne out of a mix of loss, grief and determination. McClain posted a two-day total of 112.750, just ahead of Shilese Jones at 111.900. Ngl, that seems like a blast. The video was originally uploaded by Konnor's mom, Lorinda McClain, because Konnor liked watching herself after practice. As we get closer and closer to the Olympics, NBC released the first three episodes of its series "Golden: The Journey of USA's Elite Gymnasts" on its new streaming service, Peacock. Until then, I saw myself as just another local yokel, Boston, who called Owens a mentor and dear friend, said last year. The 17-year-old took to Instagram Wednesday, announcing that a back injury would hold her out of this . After a subpar performance at the U.S. Classic McClain abruptly left her gym in West Virginia and moved to Texas to train at WOGA under Valeri Liukin. A star on the junior level, McClain won the U.S. all-around silver medal in 2019, then went on to the inaugural junior world championships as the alternate for the American team. Theyre not medical professionals nor dietitians. Well, I'm not going to say no to that, Susan shared, laughing. Her gymnastics, she said, was garbage. Her confidence shattered. She starts crying, hates everything, and at the end of the meet, even thinks of quitting gymnastics for good. Konnor McClain won her first U.S. gymnastics national championship Sunday night, rallying past Shilese Jones in the finals to complete a stunning turnaround since switching training gyms last year. U.S. all-around championKonnor McClainposted that she will miss the world gymnastics championships that start in three weeks due to a back injury, writing that her season is officially over.. And then, when it comes to my front aerial and my dismount, I'm like, "Whoa, I'm shaking again. People are going to hate me Because I wasnt even acting like myself.. Konnor McClain | The Gymternet After the death of her father in December 2021, McClain turned to Olympic champion Sunisa Lee for support and guidance. In the run-up to the 1968 Olympics, Boston reportedly became Beamons unofficial coach after Beamon and other UTEP track athletes lost their scholarships for boycotting a meet against BYU because of the Mormon churchs historically racist views. Empower Team USA athletes to achieve sustained competitive excellence and well-being. Shes also talked about college gymnastics in the future, but hasnt decided on any schools. It was a difficult ending to an otherwise encouraging meet for the resilient 20-year-old, who promised her father Sylvester before his death from kidney disease last December that she would press on in hopes of reaching the 2024 Olympics. And I think just to throw that into the mix, I think just put a little extra pressure with our upgrades because before she had three years to perfect the upgrades and now she's really having to work on them a little bit more than she probably would have.. Drury seems exhausted from her training, which Laurie relates to. Knowing that Konnor was talented from the start, Susan made sure she educated herself about training an elite gymnast and what she had to learn - Konnor is Susans first and so far, only elite gymnast. It's definitely really weird because they always call me the baby and they always call me Baby Konnor, and, so, when we went to Winter Cup, everybody was younger than me and I was like, Oh my gosh, they're so tiny and cute, she said. As the National Anthem is sung, the athletes are making their entrance. Konnor McClain moves to WOGA (confirmed on her IG) : r/Gymnastics - Reddit Everything was moving fast. Konnor initially started at a gym where Susan coached, and when Susan opened her own gym in 2009 closer to home, Konnor followed. She skipped last years nationals (and a shot at Olympic Trials) to focus on 2024 after moving from West Virginia to Texas to train under AnnaandValeri Liukin, the parents of 2008 Olympic gold medalistNastia Liukin. When it comes to this season, Konnor says, Olympic Trials is definitely my goal right now. Susan agreed, sharing, Her attention to detail, technique, just her fundamentals and basics are outstandingI'm just looking at her every day, and then I see other gymnasts. Carl Lewis (@Carl_Lewis) April 30, 2023, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Flipboard (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Daisuke Takahashi, pioneering Japanese figure skater, retires again, Ralph Boston, Olympic long jump champion, dies at 83, Ukraine boycotts judo worlds after Russians, Belarusians allowed as neutrals, Joel Embiid unlikely to play at FIBA World Cup, France coach says, who called Owens a mentor and dear friend, reportedly became Beamons unofficial coach. I think it definitely happened way too fast for me and too fast for my brain to handle all of that, she said. TOP 9 why did konnor mcclain switch gyms BEST and NEWEST Rest with the greats. I'm actually really excited for [the trip to Germany] and excited for later in the season where I could hopefully put some upgrades in and be at my full potential and peak at worlds, said McClain. You are using an out of date browser. She arrived in Florida last week hoping to simply build momentum toward the world championship selection camp in October. Now shes eyeing a place in the US team alongside superstar Simone Biles. She wore a small patch with the letters MM on the back of her leotard, a tribute to the painful reality shed been living. Growing up in a family of athletes, Lorinda played soccer and cheered in college, Konnors dad played college football at Southern Utah, and her uncle was in the Olympic Trials for boxing. In retrospect, this was probably the perfect way to find out about the news that was going to rule her entire life for the next year or so. Susan says she still loves Konnor and wants the best for her. She then performed a balance beam routine in front of a studio audience. I think that is so good because sometimes Konnor can be shy. I just loved going along with it because they started it, she said. Daisuke Takahashi, who after an Olympic medal-winning singles figure skating career came back to ice dance, has retired along with partnerKana Muramoto, according to Japanese media citing a video on their Instagram. U.S. gymnast Konnor McClain on resetting after tragedy: "If Suni says As a teenager, Konnor makes me feel SEEN. A post shared by Konnor McClain (@konnormcclain_). Why is it a big deal? If youd like to watch along, the episodes are available. I was very unmotivated, I didn't want to go to the gym, I didn't care about the Olympics and I just wanted to be done with gymnastics completely because it felt like there was a part of me that was like missing and that's what I told her.". With McClain, her confidence restored, on the cusp of an opportunity she feared would never come. I literally thought that I was the most garbage gymnast ever, she said this week. And then she said based on how this will go, maybe she can do two classes next year. Getting to know Konnor McClain - one of Team USA's fastest rising stars. Konnor McClain rallies past Shilese Jones in finals to claim first U.S It was easy to end my career, in 1968, Boston said. Then, last December, Marc contracted COVID-19. I think its considered a big deal because: Real data on college teams put together by mezzamare! I'm wondering whether she was crying because a) she was unhappy at Revolution (and the WOGA move is a response to that). Konnor McClain, rising U.S. gymnast, focuses on 2024 Olympic cycle Luckily for her, this National Team is only for a few months, and will be renamed at U.S. Championships, where she will get another shot to make it back on. I am thrilled to see former Olympians working for large media outlets and promoting the sport. Finally, after nearly two years of turmoil, she feels like shes back where she wanted to be with two years to go until the Paris Games. Theres nothing for fourth place, so I just said, OK, thats enough.'. So it was totally up to her. She gets a 12.400. When McClain started her recruiting process, she began to tease fans about her collegiate choice, dropping real and fake clues on social media about the schools she was considering. Konnor McClain found out about her Olympic eligibility the same way everyone else did: on Twitter. But despite an error on the uneven bars McClain won the competition. Kayla Dicello took fourth, with reigning Olympic floor exercise champion Jade Carey in fifth. Also in qualifying, Beamon fouled his first two of three jumps, giving him one last chance to make the final. She committed to an elite schedule that she hopes will take her to the world championships this fall and eventually to Paris 2024, and she chose LSU as her future NCAA team. McClain had trained at the same gym, with the same coach, her whole career. Though everyone is excited about her Olympic eligibility, Konnor is focused on one thing at a time. But now, I feel like it's pushed me to be better at gymnastics and a better person. Her and her sister are super closeother than a good gymnast, she's just a good person. . Konnor McClain BB EF DTB Pokal Team Challenge 2022 14.033 (E - Reddit These two were the most amazing people I knew. I'd say this year, just with the age change, was definitely a hard year for me because just running it through my head, thinking about it and seeing it everywhere all over social media was definitely hard, but I've learned just to not think about it and to keep my mind away from it more, instead of just always putting that on myself and putting the pressure on myself, she shared. Outwardly, McClain was progressing nicely as a gymnast in early 2022, winning the all-around at the Winter Cup in Frisco, Texas, and the City of Jesolo Trophy, an international team event held in Italy. In August 1960, Boston broke Owens world record in the long jump that stood since 1935. And just get out of the house - she has more energy now. Beamon heeded the advice and advanced. Since then, the site has transformed into a one-stop-shop for college gymnastics news, from recruiting analysis to meet coverage at the NCAA national championships thanks to the hard work of 15-plus contributors. Your email address will not be published. Honestly for a really good two or three months it was kind of like a seesaw, ups and downs, Liukin recalled. Meet Konnor McClain, The 15-Year-Old U.S. Gymnast Suddenly In - TeamUSA She gets a 12.550. Her sister was doing some backbend kick overs, and Konnor started doing backbend kick overs at 20 months oldthat's a little freaky for 20 months old and we have videos of it because I was like, no one will ever believe us, Lorinda shared. Konnor knew my dad very, very well, but she knows my family. Born in 2005, McClain was originally too young to compete at the 2020 Games, but the postponement of the Olympics suddenly made her age eligible for Tokyo, drastically changing her plans. Lauries watching Charlotte Drury train on trampoline. Its a great routine, especially after falling at Classic.