Kyla Ross

Kyla Ross won the 2009 and 2010 US junior national championships, and is a member of the 2012 Olympic team that won Olympic gold.

At the 2009 US nationals, Ross excelled, earning golds in the all-around, vault, and beam, and winning the bronze on floor. She then defended her title in 2010, repeating in the all-around, and picking up a gold on beam, as well as bronzes on vault and floor.

In her final year as a junior, she was the runner-up to Katelyn Ohashi in the all-around at the 2011 nationals, and earned silvers on bars and beam, and the bronze on vault.

Ross was born in October of 1996, making her age-eligible for the London Olympics by only about two months. In the past, gymnasts who will be age-eligible to compete at the Games have been allowed to compete at worlds the year before the Olympics, but due to a rule change, Ross was not permitted to try to make the 2011 world team.

The rule change is controversial (former Olympic champion Carly Patterson competed as a 15-year-old at worlds in 2003, as did 2008 all-around silver medalist Shawn Johnson, in 2007). Why? Many feel that young gymnasts deserve the competitive experience of participating at a worlds before the Olympic year, and that countries should be allowed to use the same athletes at worlds (where teams qualify to the Olympics) that they plan to use at the following year's Olympics.

Still, Ross has been able to accrue international competitive experience, even without worlds. She competed at both the 2009 Junior Pan American Championships and the 2010 Pan Ams, and won all-around gold both times. She also earned silver in the all-around at the 2010 Pacific Rim Championships, in the junior division, and again in the senior division in 2012.

Ross is a calm, cool competitor, and it showed at the London Games. She competed on bars and beam in the team finals, providing the US with solid scores and helping them to win the team gold medal. Though she didn't qualify to any event finals (she just missed out on beam due to the two-per-country rule), at just 15, she already has an Olympic gold medal.

Kyla Ross was born October 24, 1996 in Honolulu, Hawaii to Kiana and Jason Ross. She has two younger siblings, Mckenna and Kayne, and now lives in Aliso Viejo, California.

Ross began gymnastics in 1999 in South Carolina, and now trains at Gym-Max Gymnastics. She's coached by Howie and Jenny Liang.

Ross' official website is kylaross.net.

International:

• 2012 Olympic Games – 1st-Team
• 2012 City of Jesolo Trophy, Jesolo, Italy - 1st-Team, AA
• 2012 Kellogg's Pacific Rim Championships, Everett, Wash. - 1st-Team, BB; 2nd-AA, UB; 3rd-FX
• 2011 City of Jesolo Trophy, Jesolo, Italy - 1st-Team, AA, BB; 2nd-VT, UB(T); 7th-FX (Jr. Div.)
• 2010 Pan American Championships, Guadalajara, Mexico - 1st-Team, AA; 2nd-FX; 6th-UB
• 2010 Pacific Rim Championships, Melbourne, Australia - 1st-Team, VT; 2nd-AA, UB, FX (Jr. Div.)
• 2010 City of Jesolo Trophy, Jesolo, Italy - 2nd-AA (Jr. Div.)
• 2009 Junior Pan American Championships, Aracaju, Brazil - 1st-Team, AA, UB, BB; 2nd-FX

National:

• 2011 Visa Championships, Saint Paul, Minn. - 2nd-AA, UB, BB; 3rd-VT; 6th-FX (Jr. Div.)
• 2011 CoverGirl Classic, Chicago, Ill. - 1st-AA, UB(T); 2nd-VT; 3rd-FX; 4th-BB (Jr. Div.)
• 2010 Visa Championships, Hartford, Conn. - 1st-AA, BB; 3rd-VT, FX; 7th-UB (Jr. Div.)
• 2010 CoverGirl Classic, Chicago, Ill. - 1st-BB; 4th-VT, UB; 8th-FX(T) (Jr. Div.)
• 2009 Visa Championships, Dallas, Texas - 1st-AA, VT, BB; 3rd-FX (Jr. Div.)
• 2009 CoverGirl Classic, Des Moines, Iowa - 1st-AA, VT; 5th-UB, FX (Jr. Div.)
• 2009 American Classic, San Diego, Calif. - 1st-BB; 2nd-AA; 3rd-VT(T), FX (Jr. Div.)
• 2008 Women's Junior Olympic Level 10 National Championships, Orlando, Fla. - 1st-AA, BB, FX; 2nd-VT (Jr. A)