Kayla Williams (gymnast)
| Kayla Williams | |||||||||||||||||||
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| — Gymnast — | |||||||||||||||||||
 Kayla Williams (center) on the podium at the 2009 World Championships | |||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||
| Full name | Kayla Williams | ||||||||||||||||||
| Country represented | United States | ||||||||||||||||||
| Born |
May 8, 1993 Nitro, West Virginia | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hometown | Huntington, West Virginia | ||||||||||||||||||
| Residence | Tuscaloosa, Alabama | ||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 2 in (1.57 m) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline | Women's artistic gymnastics | ||||||||||||||||||
| Level | Senior Elite | ||||||||||||||||||
| Years on national team | 2009 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Gym | Cincinnati Gymnastics Academy | ||||||||||||||||||
| College team | University of Alabama | ||||||||||||||||||
| Head coach(es) | Mary Lee Tracy | ||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Kayla Williams (born May 8, 1993) is an American artistic gymnast. She is the 2009 Vault World Champion and 2009 Vault National Champion.
Williams began 2009 as a Level 10 gymnast, which is below elite level in USA Gymnastics. In May 2009, she won the Junior Olympic National Championships in the all-around, vault, and floor exercise and won the silver medal on balance beam, losing to fellow gymnast Kailie Ponto. She qualified to elite level at a meet in June.[1]
After qualifying for the U.S. Classic, she won the vault and floor exercise at that event and placed fifth in the all-around and on balance beam. This qualified her to the 2009 U.S. Artistic Gymnastics Championships.[2] Williams was the first West Virginian since Mary Lou Retton in 1984 to compete at the U.S. Championships.[1] At the U.S. Championships, she won the National title on vault and made the U.S. National Team as a senior elite. Two months later, Williams was named to the team for the 2009 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships.
At the 2009 World Championships, Williams qualified first on vault. On the night of the vault event final, she competed a handspring laidout Rudi and a Yurchenko double full for a combined score of 15.087 and won the gold medal. She is the first American gymnast to win the World vault title.[3]
Williams attended Huntington High School.[4]
She retired from elite gymnastics in July 2010, but plans to compete in Level 10 and in the NCAA. In May 2010, she committed to compete for the University of Alabama gymnastics team.[5]
She is a junior at the University of Alabama, majoring in Public Relations. She will graduate in 2015[6]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Atkinson, Tommy R. (August 9, 2009). "Spot in nationals fulfills dream for Huntington gymnast". Charleston Gazette. Retrieved October 17, 2009.
- ↑ Atkinson, Tommy R. (October 5, 2009). "Nitro native heads to world stage". Charleston Gazette. Retrieved October 17, 2009.
- ↑ "Williams vaults to gold at worlds". ESPN. October 17, 2009. Retrieved October 17, 2011.
- ↑ Cline, Carrie (October 21, 2009). "Gold Medal Gymnast Kayla Williams Returns to School". WSAZ-TV. Retrieved October 17, 2011.
- ↑ Traylor, Grant (May 29, 2010). "Williams going to Alabama". The Herald-Dispatch. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
- ↑ http://www.rolltide.com/sports/w-gym/mtt/williams_kayla00.html
External links
- Kayla Williams at Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique
- Kayla Williams at USA Gymnastics
- Alabama Crimson Tide bio