Dear Gymternet - Journals from Elena Arenas (Entry #9 February 2015)

Dear Gymternet, 

This month has been the best! I competed some new skills at a local meet and I won the WOGA Classic International session! 

At the local meet I competed a Maloney on bars and a piked full-in on floor for the first time. It wasn't an elite meet, but it was good for me to get more experience competing new skills and feeling pressure. I hit 4 for 4 and stuck my vault and dismount off bars. It was actually my first time getting a 38 with JO scoring. I also got to compete with about 25 of my teammates because it was a level 9/10/open session. I had so much fun being with all them! 

The WOGA Classic was a great meet for me! My goal was to hit all four events and I was so happy when I did! Then I was really excited when I found out that I won! It was kind of funny because I found a penny on heads in our rental car when I first got in and I said it was going to be my lucky penny. I felt very confident heading into this meet because I had been really consistent in training. I was looking forward to competing against the other countries which were China, Japan, Wales, Mexico, Russia, Netherlands, and Canada. Wales and Mexico were grouped with me along with Morgan Hurd and Aria Brusch. I started on beam, which is my favorite rotation order. I was 6th up on beam, so I did a lot of skills on the floor to keep warm. By the time it was my turn- I was the only one going! I hit a great beam routine and got a 14.150! I was so excited because it was my first 14! Next was floor and warm up went great. I saluted and got on the floor. The music started playing but it wasn't my music. That had never happened to me before! I didn't really know what to do, so I stepped off the floor and saluted again. The right music played the second time and I did a pretty good floor routine. I got a 13.600, but I think I could have done better because my piked full-in landed a little low. Vault was next and it felt really strong, I got a 14.300. Bars was my last event and my warm up was a little shaky. I was last up in the whole meet and it felt like I had to wait forever. I was the only one going and I knew that I could win if I hit an awesome routine. I did the best routine that I have ever done and got a 13.900! I was so thrilled! Nastia Liukin, Simone Biles, Madison Kocian, and Rebecca Bross were handing out awards, which was awesome! I placed in the top 3 on everything except floor and I got a really cool trophy for winning the all-around. 

After the meet we celebrated my little sister's birthday. Last year she spent it in Ohio for the Buckeye Qualifier. My parents decorated our hotel room Frozen-themed and she loved it! She said for her birthday all she wanted was to throw a quarter in the fountain at our hotel haha! Luckily we have family in Texas (only 10 minutes from our hotel) so we were able to spend a lot of time with them during the whole weekend and they were there to celebrate her birthday and make it really special! 

Elena with her cousins

Throughout the trip, I read the Maze Runner. My parents started getting annoyed because I would not stop reading! It was such a good book though! I finished it before we left and my mom said we could rent the movie when we got home. I was really excited, but then it wouldn't load. I stayed up for like 2 1/2 hours waiting for it to load! I got about 1/4 of the way through and the screen said it would be ready to play in 14 hours! I waited a little bit and it kept dropping an hour every minute. When it got to 4 hours, it went back up to 14. Ugh! I finally gave up and went to bed, but we watched it the next day! 

The only thing that I have coming up next month is developmental camp which is March 13th. I've learned a lot of new skills and I can't wait to show them off! 

~Elena

Quick Chat with Maile O'Keefe

Maile O'Keefe is a junior international elite from Las Vegas, Nevada who is entering her third year at the elite level. She trains for 30-40 hours a week under Sorin and Tammy Salcianu  at Salcianu Elite- The Academy of Gymnastics & Dance. Last year Maile finished sixth all around and second on floor at the Secret Classic and thirteenth all around at the P&G Championships. Her strong performance during the competition season and throughout the monthly developmental camps earned her one of two spots to represent the United States at the Pan American Gymnastics Union Camp last November. Most recently, at the WOGA Classic, Maile finished fourth all around in the junior division. While Maile won't become a senior until 2018, she shows a lot of promise for the future. We caught up with Maile to talk about upgrades/goals for this season and more!

Photo Credit: USA Gymnastics

How did you get started in gymnastics? 
Well, when I was little, my cousin was a gymnast and he was teaching me cartwheels and that kind of stuff in my backyard. So my Aunt got me a one month free trial for Christmas!

Who is your gymnastics idol? 
Alicia Sacramone because when she falls, she gets back up and tries again.

What has been your proudest moment thus far in your career? 
Winning sixth place all-around at the 2014 Secret Classic.

You're currently the only elite gymnast in Nevada, how does that feel?
It's pretty cool knowing that you're a "one of a kind" in your state.

What has been the coolest thing you've got to experience since becoming an elite? 
Probably meeting Simone Biles! I met her at the 2014 Secret Classic and I was thinking 'dang, this girl is really short and funny!'

What do you like to do when you're not in the gym?
When I'm not in the gym I like to hang out with my friends and do my nails.

What do you want to be when you grow up?
I want to be a physical therapist because I think the body is really interesting.

Are you working on any upgrades for this season? 
A double pike off beam. (Maile is also working a double layout off bars.)

What are your goals for this season?
My goal for this season is to do my best and hopefully place top six at P&G's.

What is your long term goal? 
My long term goal is to make it to the 2020 Olympics!

What is the best piece of advice you've been given? 
That it doesn't matter how hard you get knocked down,  it's how hard you get knocked down and still keep going.

A Look Inside: University of Michigan Gymnastics

On Wednesday, January 28th, we visited the University of Michigan and got an inside look at how one of the top NCAA teams in the country trains in preparation for defending their conference title and making a Super Six appearance.

Michigan is currently ranked fifth in the nation and in the top ten on every event. They are also the only team in the nation to have three gymnasts ranked in the top thirteen in the all-around.

We would like to thank Brad Rudner, Bev Plocki and the Michigan Women's Gymnastics team for welcoming us into their gym. Good luck with the rest of the season and go blue!