Carrie and her dad didn’t talk much about her career after Tokyo. Carey once said her experience at the Olympics meant the end of her days as a globally competitive gymnast known as the “elite” in the sports world, and that she had a career at Oregon State University. She thought her NCAA meant the beginning of her career. Her two areas of gymnastics have different requirements, competition schedules, scoring systems, and difficulty levels, and many past US Olympians have navigated their careers the way Carey first envisioned. That is, the elite, then the university.
However, changes in training, reward rules, and expected age have opened up alternative avenues where competition at one level does not prevent competition at other levels.A firm decision about her future. Carrie’s dad said she had a “gut feeling” that she wanted to go back to the elite level.
Bryan said of his daughter, “I have left things a little unfinished.”
That’s because she stumbled in the Olympic vault final, where she entered as a medal contender, and qualified as an individual, so she wasn’t part of the four-man team that won the silver medal.Once considered a vault and floor specialist, Carey has grown into an all-around threat, including here at her U.S. Championships, where she was able to earn her first all-around national medal. Carey advances to Tokyo General Finals After Simone Biles retired Despite falling on the beam, he took 8th place. It opened her eyes to the possibilities.
“I think I made the Olympics successful, but not as successful as I know,” she said. “So definitely I want to go back.”
After an outstanding freshman season, Carey is back in the elite at this week’s U.S. Championships and has his eyes set on the World Championships in October. Olympian Jordan Childs (UCLA) and Tokyo alternative Liang Wong (Florida) made the same decision after their freshman season and are also in the mix for the World Championship teams.Overall Olympic Champion Sunisa Lee (Auburn) says he hopes to return to the elite by the 2024 Paris Olympics.
As top gymnasts go through the recruitment process, “these conversations [about continuing elite]Florida coach Jenny Rowland has plenty of gymnasts with varsity experience on her roster. That includes Wong and his NCAA all-around champion Trinity Thomas. As a college elite“There are a lot of young girls who look up to them and look up to them. Why?”
The newfound ability of collegiate athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness will allow Olympians to take advantage of the most profitable moments of their careers and maintain their collegiate eligibility. I was.of ability to do both Bringing more Olympic gymnasts into the collegiate ranks. A healthier training environment has also made these elite returns more common. Sport at this level is certainly difficult, Carey says Having said that, it’s also fun, and I hope gymnasts come back.
“Coaches are training smarter, [gymnasts are] It lasts longer and it doesn’t hit as much when you’re young,” said Carey’s dad. Wasn’t full at 16”
College gymnastics routines are similar to level 10 ones. development programElite performances are generally longer, have more difficult elements, and are judged open-ended rather than out of 10. As such, college gymnasts who wish to continue their elite careers must dedicate time to maintaining skills that are not found in everyday college life.
Chile trained in World Champions Center Originally from GAGE, Missouri, Wong returned to the club in time for the summer elite season. Carey stayed at Oregon State University and worked with college coaches and his father for about a week a month.
This season in Florida, Wong tackled the day’s college practice assignments before moving on to her elite skills. rice field. This is not always the case with gymnasts.
“You don’t even have to say to her, ‘Hey, what do you think about doing this or this?'” Roland said. “She just came in and she already has her plans for herself. confidence.
When Wong competed at last month’s US Classic, she delivered well-executed skills that weren’t part of her college repertoire and won the overall, even after falling to the bar.
NCAA gymnasts compete almost every weekend. It’s very different from the elite tier, which only has a few major competitions. College gymnasts focus on running for perfect scores, and frequent competitions (in front of packed stadiums in some schools) boost their competitive confidence.
Tanya Chaplin, Carey’s coach at Oregon State University, said, “We salute the judges week in and week out. And even if it’s not a difficult routine, it makes a difference.”
As a freshman, Wong scored at least 9.975 on each apparatus and perfect 10s on vault and horizontal bar.Carey, his Pac-12 gymnast of the year, highest average overall score during the regular season. She averaged 9.94 in her 48 routines. This is amazing consistency. Both Carey and Chiles, on the floor she scored 10 pairs and on the bar she scored 1.
The challenge for coaches will be to keep gymnasts healthy. In the future, Carrie’s dad said he wanted his daughter to get some more time off after the NCAA season. You know, we’re planning on keeping Carey from competing in all four events at every college tournament next season.
The January-April NCAA season, the US elite competition in the summer, and the World Championships in the fall create a careful balance each year for these athletes. However, by the time Chile and Carrie left Tokyo, they wanted to get back on track that would end with the Olympics.
Childs said, “I knew I had more to give.”
