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Pint-sized powerhouses

The nation's top gymnasts take over Puyallup

Avani Nadkarni

It was just a few hours into the USA Gymnastics womens Junior Olympic National Championships, but the 700 competing gymnasts, almost uniformly in sparkly leotards, had already made the Americraft ShowPlex on the Puyallup Fairgrounds home.

Gym bags, Ace bandages and warm-up jackets were strewn around the periphery of the complex. The gymnasts, ranging in age from 10 to 18, were either competing on one of the four apparatuses — bars, beam, floor and vault — or getting last-minute instructions from one of the 550 coaches present. As if the judges’ stoic expressions wasn’t enough pressure, scouts from 110 colleges and universities across the nation — pretty much every college with a women’s gymnastics program — were seated in the back of the room, pens poised.

“It’s been going pretty smoothly so far,” said Brent Phelps, head coach at Auburn Gymnastics, which sponsored the event.

Since all four apparatuses are being utilized simultaneously, with different judges at each one, the arena was organized chaos. Each time one gymnast finished her routine, several coaches, like a pit crew at a racing event, swooped in to adjust the apparatus’ height or to add or remove mats. During warm-ups, the girls on the vault looked like planes on a runway, each running down the mat and top speed and thrusting themselves over the vault, one after another.

Getting the most cheers was Baely Rowe, a 14-year-old phenom from Auburn Gymnastics. Each time she stepped up to the apparatus, her braces flashing and her game-face on, the ShowPlex erupted in cheers from hometown fans. She was the gym’s one hope to place high in the standings and Rowe went on to each apparatus with concentration, only breaking out into a smile after she’d nailed her routine. Like a true champion, she fell a few times attempting a trick on the bars during warm-ups, but executed the same move flawlessly during the actual competition. Many of the staff and parents from Auburn Gymnastics were mingling on the competition floor, helping gymnasts and answering questions, but most stopped to watch nervously when Rowe competed and let out audible sighs of relief when she completed.

By Saturday, the second day of competition, Rowe had delivered, finishing third overall in her age group and qualifying for the Junior Olympic National team and bigger meets ahead. It was an impressive task for Rowe and for Auburn Gymnastics — gyms from all over the country were represented, including the powerhouses that produced Olympic champions like Shannon Miller and Kerri Strug.

By the end of the weekend, Phelps was elated and exhausted and ready for a nap — and ready for the gym again.

“We have a pretty good reputation here,” Phelps said of Auburn Gymnastics. “This event (turned out) wonderfully.”

Reach Reporter Avani Nadkarni at 253-841-2481 ext. 314 or by e-mail at avani.nadkarni@puyallupherald.com.