'The sport is more diverse': How Florida and collegiate gymnastics have helped grow the sport

As a freshman, UF gymnast Anya Pilgrim has already made a name for herself within the Gators community.

She earned a 39.525 All-Around score in her first meet ever on Jan. 12, the best score for a UF freshman in their first meet.

Last Friday, at Auburn, she tied Florida’s best score in the vault.

At this rate, Pilgrim hopes to be an inspiration to young gymnasts, something she lacked that growing up.

“When I was a young gymnast, there wasn’t a lot of Black gymnasts to look up to,” she said.

But Florida’s meet on the 12^th proved things are changing in college gymnastics because of two new teams – Fisk and Talladega.

In celebration of Martin Luther King Day and UF’s equality night, the Gators invited the programs to its first meet of the season on Jan. 12, along with George Washington University.

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Gymnastics changing faces

The two historically black colleges are the nation’s first two HBCUs with a gymnastics program.

Both programs are in their infancy. Fisk began play last season. Talladega, meanwhile, were competing in its first ever meet.

“There had to have been a lot of nerves, a lot of anticipation, a lot of emotions. Not just for the student-athletes, but for the coaching staff as well,” Rowland said. “Starting a program is no easy task.”

Pilgrim said Fisk and Talladega will bring more awareness to diversity in gymnastics, and Ellie Lazzari added she hopes it’ll help young girls fall in love with gymnastics.

“I think it was a really good opportunity for young girls to really look up and see how much the sport is becoming more diverse and really embracing that,” Lazzari said.

Numbers back up Lazzari’s statements. In 2022, the top three spots at U.S. Championships were claimed by gymnasts of color (Konnor McClain, Shilese Jones and Jordan Chiles). That increased to the top six in 2023 with Simone Biles, Jones and UF’s own Leanne Wong as the top trio.

That’s a long way from 1980s, when the U.S. had no Black medalists in gymnastics. Now, according to an NPR article from September, the national team at this summer’s Paris Olympics could be the first to consist of entirely gymnasts of color.

One resident hoping to speak change

Pamela Marshall Koons has also noticed the change in gymnastics. Koons is the Executive Director of At The WELLness Network here in Gainesville.

She organized a watch party of about 50 Black youth and community members to attend the meet.

The motivation for Koons dates to December. She was in Nashville visiting family and saw that Fisk’s gymnastics program planned a community event.

She left the event inspired.

“There’s some young ladies who thought the last time they’d compete would be in high school, and now they’re competing at the college level and at an SEC school,” Koons said.

Koons returned back to Gainesville and began to organize a meet up. She described a special feeling watching Black families see the gymnasts.

A woman who attended was in her late 70s. She cheered at Lincoln High and grew up at a time when UF was segregated.

“The chances of her being on the floor, doing anything for UF would have been if she was there cleaning,” Koons said. “For her to be able to see these young ladies compete in gymnastics was very special.”

Koons called UF “forward thinking” for inviting Fisk and Talladega and hopes to work with the team to increase outreach in the community.

She continued that she’d also like to work with gymnastics schools here in Gainesville such as Balance 180.

“I want some of their information available to kids in the Boys and Girls Club or public housing,” Koons said. “Some of them don’t even know there is a gymnastics program. They don’t realize that standing on your head at five is a gift.”

No. 8 Florida (4-0, 1-0 SEC) is back at the O'Connell Center Friday night vs No. 6 Alabama (4-0-1, 1-0-1 SEC). Meet start time is at 6:45 p.m.

Noah Ram covers Gainesville-area high school sports and University of Florida athletics for The Gainesville Sun. Contact him at Nram@gannett.com and follow him @Noah_ram1 on Twitter.