Everett hosts pivotal gymnastics competition on the road to the Olympics

Hundreds of gymnasts from around the world are gearing up for one of the biggest international competitions outside the Olympics. And it’s happening in Everett.

It’s the second time the city has won the right to host the biennial Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships in April at the Xfinity Arena. It’s the last big meet before the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

A stand-out performance at the competition back in 2012 launched Jordyn Wieber straight to the gold medal-winning Olympic team in London, along with Gabby Douglas, Kyla Ross, and McKayla Maroney.

But during her Pacific Rim performance, she was just 16 years old and waiting desperately to hear if she was going to make Team USA.

“I know I trained for about seven hours a day on week days,” Wieber said. “So they’re definitely putting in those hours and paying attention to a lot of detail work. And I think at this point they just finished World Championships, so now everyone’s going to start putting a little more difficulty into their routines, just making sure that their routines are consistent so they can be a member of that team.”

Wieber says she’s returning to the competition for the first time since her win four years ago to mentor young gymnasts. Her biggest piece of advice is to learn to move on from mistakes, like when she fell off the balance beam during the finals at Pacific Rim. She recovered and went on to take home the gold in all-around.

The competition is open to the public. Wieber says that by April, the techniques will get more and more complex. Gymnasts will be taking risks and showcasing their most cutting-edge routines on the balance beam, the bars, and the floor as a run-through of their Olympic best.

“I think one of the cool things about gymnastics is when you see it live, there are so many things that you don’t get to see on TV that you get to experience live,” Wieber said. “And it’s really exciting; you see the camaraderie between all the girls on the team. And especially USA, we’re always supporting each other and cheering each other on from the sidelines, and you don’t always get to see that on TV.”

She hopes it will inspire more young girls to go all in on the sport just like she did.

But not everyone can be an Olympian. Wieber says she wants the athletes and their families who flock to the meet to perform and to watch to realize the sport is about more than just getting a medal.

“Right now, I’m a college student and I know that I probably would have a very different experience if I hadn’t been a gymnast and hadn’t learned how to manage my time and how to work hard and do all those things,” Wieber said. “So it’s definitely all the life lessons in this sport that have taken me to where I am now.”