Brenna Dowell's return to elite
I've been a fan of Dowell's since 2013, when she upgraded her routines and showed she was a Worlds team contender. Like other gym fans, I was excited to see her shine at Oklahoma, which she's done for one season. And when I found out she would defer a year to come back to elite, I was excited and glad she was going to give it another shot after just missing out two years in a row.
Watching her elite level uneven bars routine again was wonderful, and it'll be interesting to see what's in store for her with the upcoming World Championships.
Watching her elite level uneven bars routine again was wonderful, and it'll be interesting to see what's in store for her with the upcoming World Championships.
Aly Raisman's domestic return
Watching Olympians attempt a comeback for another Games is always a story the media loves to cover. It makes complete sense why that's the case for Fierce Five member and reigning Olympic floor exercise champion Aly Raisman.
Her new routines are looking great, and it doesn't look like she hasn't competed since 2012. And just like before, her floor is a crowd-pleaser.
Maggie Nichols' resilient return from injury
After Nichols got injured at the 2014 Pan American Championships, it was disappointing to see that she would no longer be a contender for the 2014 World Championships. But she's recovered and is better than ever! After finishing second at the 2015 P&G Gymnastics Championships right behind reigning World Champion Simone Biles, it's evident that she is truly a star on the rise.
The Philippine National Team's performance at the Southeast Asian Games
As a Filipino-American and a gymnastics fanatic, I was so ecstatic for the women's gymnastics Philippine National Team when they got bronze at the 2015 Southeast Asian Games and made history. I'm all for promoting the sport, and the Philippine National Team did just that with their great finish in SEA Games team finals.
In addition to the team's success, two of their gymnasts had individual success, too. Ava Verdeflor and Lizzy Leduc competed in all-around and event finals at the SEA Games. Verdeflor finished fourth in the all-around and earned silver on bars while Leduc finished sixth all-around. Hearing about Filipino gymnasts have international success just makes me so proud to be a Filipino-American gymnastics fan and even prouder to just be Filipino, especially since gymnastics is not a big deal in the Philippines.
Maddie Desch wins silver at Pan Ams
Desch's gymnastics have caught my eye since I first watched her at the 2013 Secret U.S. Classic. She's had her troubles in competition, so it was pleasing to see her do well at her first major international assignment. Although it wasn't perfect, her performance in the all-around finals at the 2015 Pan American Games was good enough to earn the silver. It finally felt like she was getting the recognition she deserves.
Paul Ruggeri makes the World team
Since Ruggeri is an University of Illinois alum, I've always wanted to root for him. But even if he wasn't, I would still want to root for him, because his gymnastics is just so entertaining and fun to watch. Plus, he's the guy who just missed out on making big international teams time and time again by being named the alternate. But this summer, he finally made it! He was named to the U.S. men's gymnastics team for the 2015 World Championships.
Laura Zeng sweeps Pan Ams
At the 2015 Pan American Games, rhythmic gymnast Laura Zeng won everything. She got gold medals for every single event she competed in (all-around, hoop, ribbon, club and ball). As a first year senior, Zeng hasn't competed in a competition of the same caliber as the Pan American Games, so sweeping the competition is very impressive!
What were your favorite gymnastics moments from the summer?
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