Alicia Sacramone led the US team to its second World title in 2007, and medaled on vault three times and floor twice in World competition.
Sacramone was a member of the 2008 US Olympic team that won a silver medal, and has indicated that she is now retired from elite gymnastics.
Oh-So-Close in '04:
Many thought that Sacramone would be selected onto the Athens team because of her incredible vaulting and tumbling ability. But inconsistent performances plagued her throughout the year, and at the 2004 Nationals she missed the cut-off to qualify to Trials because of a disastrous bar routine. In 2005 she came back with a vengeance, winning the floor gold and the vault bronze at the World Championships.A Rock for Team USA:
Between 2005 and 2008 Sacramone gained the consistency she lacked when she was younger. In 2006 and 2007, Sacramone competed on three events in the pressure-packed World team finals, and brought in stellar scores every time.Three Event Specialist:
Like Chinese superstar Cheng Fei, Sacramone only performed for the US team on vault, beam, and floor. In 2008, Sacramone and National Team Coordinator Martha Karolyi decided that she would stop training uneven bars altogether. Because of her weaker skills on bars, she wouldn't be in the line-up for the US team on that event.Cool Skills:
Sacramone competed one of the most difficult vaults in the world: a front handspring Rudi (1.5 twists). She also performed a front tuck to immediate back tuck on beam, and a full-in and Arabian double front on floor.NCAA and Elite:
Very few US female gymnasts have competed in NCAA gymnastics at the same time as elite (Olympic level). Sacramone was on the Brown University gymnastics team her freshman year (2006), and set school records in the vault, floor, and all-around. Though Brown is not in the top tier of NCAA teams, Sacramone enjoyed the experience. "It was more laid back, and more team oriented than elite," she says. "It was a big benefit to compete every weekend instead of every month or so like we do in elite. It helped me learn how to compete so many times in a row, like we do at Worlds or at the Olympics. Now I'm used to that."She became an assistant coach at Brown the following year so she could focus on training for the Olympics. "It was a hard decision to leave the team and the girls, she explains, "It just got really hard to do both, and to try to work out at the Brown gym and my other gym. I was risking injury to myself."
Personal Info:
Born December 3, 1987 in Winchester, MA, Sacramone has an older brother Jonathan. Her father, Fred, is an orthodontist, and her mother, Gail, a salon owner. She'd love to become a fashion designer one day, and is majoring in sociology at Brown.
Sacramone trained at Brestyan's Gymnastics under Mihai and Silvia Brestyan.
Gymnastics Results:
International:- 2008 Olympics: 2nd team; 4th vault
- 2007 World Championships: 1st team; 3rd vault; 2nd floor
- 2006 World Championships: 2nd team; 2nd vault
- 2006 World Cup: 2nd vault
- 2005 World Championships: 3rd vault; 1st floor
- 2005 Pan American Games: 1st team; 1st vault; 1st floor
- 2005 World Cup (Ghent, Belgium): 1st vault; 1st floor
- 2005 American Cup: 1st vault; 2nd floor
- 2004 Pan American Games: 1st vault; 1st floor
- 2004 Pacific Alliance Championships: 1st team; 1st vault
- 2008 US Olympic Trials: 1st vault; 5th beam; 5th floor
- 2008 Visa Championships (US Nationals): 1st vault; 2nd floor; 3rd beam
- 2007 Visa Championships (US Nationals): 1st vault; 3rd beam; 3rd floor
- 2007 US Classic: 1st vault; 1st beam; 1st floor
- 2006 Visa Championships (US Nationals): 5th all-around; 1st vault; 1st floor
- 2006 US Classic: 3rd all-around; 1st vault; 2nd beam; 1st floor
- 2005 Visa Championships (US Nationals): 4th all-around; 1st vault; 3rd beam; 1st floor
- 2004 Visa Championships (US Nationals): 2nd vault
- 2003 US Nationals: 3rd floor
Check out photos of Alicia Sacramone in action
Next:
2008 American Olympic Gymnasts
2008 International Competitors
Go to the 2008 Olympics Main Page
