Senior Nikki Taylo is a great friend and student to many but to others, she is a fantastic teammate. The soon to be Ram at West Chester University in Pennsylvania is an avid and competitive gymnast. MDO was able to sit down with Nikki and learn about her enthusiasm for competing at a competitive level in gymnastics while balancing her school and social life.

MDO: For how long have you been competing in gymnastics and what got you into the sport?

NT: I’ve been doing gymnastics since I was little but I also did many other sports while I was growing up. It wasn’t until 8th grade when I decided I wanted to pursue gymnastics for the rest of high school. Although gymnastics has always been in my life, I didn’t start seriously competing until summer going into freshman year.

MDO: Are you planning on continuing gymnastics after high school?

NT: I will not be continuing gymnastics after high school because I started competing at an older age and due to my height, it took me longer to learn skills. Plus it has really taken a physical toll on my body. Most girls do gymnastics as they develop. That was not the case for me so my body had to completely adapt to something very strenuous that I was doing very often. I feel like I’m always in pain! I’m upset that my career will be over soon but I’m excited to try new things in college. I would love to participate in intramural sports, work out on my own, run and do yoga.

MDO: Is it difficult to balance gymnastics and school?

NT: It is very hard to balance school and gymnastics. I practice 5 days a week for 3 hours at a time so it can be a lot. I also have a job as a coach where I practice, so around 4 I will always head to gymnastics and coach the younger kids for about 2 hours. Then from 6-9 I have practice myself, followed by dinner and homework. I try and do homework in between activities or throughout the school day. Quite a busy schedule Monday-Friday with normally a day off. On weekends, I coach from 9-12:30 on Saturdays and then I have practice until 3. Now that the end of the year is coming, I don’t have to worry about school work as much. The beginning of the year was the very tough though between balancing school, gymnastics, and applying to college.

MDO: How has gymnastics changed you for the better over the past four years?

NT: I can’t just name one experience I got from gymnastics so I will name a few. It definitely builds confidence and makes you step out of your comfort zone. Our competition season is from January to June and we have about 5 little competitions and then we have states, regionals, and nationals. This years state competition will be my last meet and its unbelievable how fast the season has gone. Competing can be stressful but it has given me a lot of confidence. Even practicing in the gym gave me a lot of confidence. I hate being in front of a lot of people and gymnastics has forced me to do that because it’s mostly an individual sport. All in all, gymnastics gave me more confidence over these past few years more than anything else in my life. Gymnastics also plays with your mind because fear is such an issue. I’ve become really physically and mentally strong.

MDO: What are your fondest memories from your experience with gymnastics?

NT: I’ve met some of the most important people in my life through gymnastics. My level this year has 15 girls and we are like a family but the entire team is over 100 girls! Two of my best friends graduated last year and I still talk to them all the time. This is my last year and all of the girls are like my little sisters. I know that they look up to me but I also admire every single one of them. The sport is so physically and mentally demanding that anyone who does it, I give them so much credit. All my coaches are very important to me also. I accidently call my main coach Dad sometimes! I’m with these people so often that it’s so hard not to become close to them and love them so much. I also love that gymnastics made me strong and capable. One of my main accomplishments that I am very proud of was being state champion for my age and division during my sophomore year.

MDO: What is the coolest thing you learned how to do from gymnastics?

NT: Probably something on beam. For a dismount, I’ve done a cartwheel back tuck full twist. That’s one of the coolest things I’ve learned and its also really fun!

MDO: Thanks for taking the time to sit down with us and answer a few questions about your love for gymnastics! Good luck at college and at the rest of your competitions. We look forward to hearing more about your final season.