All Things Gymnastics Podcast

This week, we’re bringing you the fourth episode in our Coaches Corner series — our interview with Utah head coach Carly Dockendorf! It’s no surprise that the Red Rocks didn’t have the finish they had hoped for last season, when, for the first time in program history, they didn’t advance to the NCAA Championships. But it’s a moment they don’t plan to let define them in 2027. This is a team that’s hungrier than ever for redemption and is truly embracing the “nothing to lose” mentality.

Carly joins us to reflect on the lessons learned...

This week, we’re bringing you the third episode in our Coaches Corner series, featuring an interview with Ryan Roberts, who is entering his first season at the helm of Auburn.

Before becoming Auburn’s head coach, Ryan spent four years at Georgia—two as the co-head coach and two as an assistant coach. He also spent four years as an assistant coach at Alabama and five years coaching at the club level at WOGA.

Ryan brings a wealth of experience to the Plains, along with a passion that could help bring Auburn back into the co...

Today, we’re excited to bring you our second episode in the Coaches Corner series, featuring an interview with two of our absolute favorite people — Nicole Jones, the new head coach at Nebraska, and Devin Wright, the associate head coach.

Nicole and Devin spent many years at MSU, helping build the program into a powerhouse in the Big Ten and on the national stage. Now at the helm of Nebraska, they have big goals for the program and are eager to get the Huskers back in the conversation when it comes to winning Big Ten titles and maki...

Today, we’re excited to bring you our interview with Rylee Guevara, a junior who transferred to Maryland from Ohio State in the offseason. During her time at Ohio State, Rylee was a staple in the beam and floor lineups, taking on the role of a steady and reliable leadoff. During her freshman season, Rylee earned a spot on the 2025 All-Big Ten Championship Team and was named a Big Ten Scholar-Athlete in both 2025 and 2026. Today, Rylee joins us to talk about her decision to transfer, navigating change, and, of course, her goals for her junior season.

Thank yo...

We’re kicking off the Coaches Corner series for the fourth year, and we’re starting things off with a new face on the show: Brett Nelligan, who is entering his 18th season as head coach of the Maryland Terrapins. During his tenure with the Terps, Brett has brought in some of the top recruiting classes in program history and led the program to 14 NCAA Regional appearances.

This season could be a good one for the Terps, as they bring in a strong transfer class, a large and talented freshman class, and returners who have been putting in t...

This week, we’re excited to be joined by NCAA Champion and rising Sooners sophomore Ella Murphy. In her freshman season, Ella earned both NCAA and WCGA First-Team All-American honors on beam, was named to the SEC All-Team on bars, beam and floor, and, of course, helped the Sooners secure their eighth NCAA team title.

Ella joins us to talk about how she ended up at Oklahoma, look back on her incredible freshman season, and discuss what’s ahead in her career.

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This week we are excited to be joined by two Michigan Wolverines who recently qualified for the World Championships this fall.

We have Sophia Diaz, a two-time NCAA individual qualifier, who recently helped the Dominican Republic make history by earning a bronze medal at the Central American and Caribbean Games. Joining her is Jahzara Ranger, who earned First Team All-Big Ten honors last season and won two bronze medals for Jamaica at the Central American and Caribbean Games—one in the all-around and one on vault.

For both JZ and Sophia, this was only their se...

This week, we are so excited to be joined by a very special guest for our 300th episode: Joscelyn Roberson, who has been a longtime favorite of ours. Joscelyn has already accomplished so much in her career, including being an alternate for the 2024 Olympic team in Paris, a team world champion in 2023, and an individual vault world bronze medalist in 2025.

After years of elite gymnastics, Joscelyn took this summer off to give her body and mind some much-needed time to rest and reset. She went through a lot over the past year, but now she’s feeling ea...

This week, we are so excited to be joined by Lacie Saltzmann, who is a rising sophomore at the University of Minnesota. Lacie had an incredible freshman season, where she was a mainstay in the Gophers’ bars and floor lineups, posting career highs of 9.9625 and 9.925, respectively. She, of course, helped her team advance out of the toughest regional to move on to the NCAA Championships and then helped the Gophers make history by advancing to the Final Four for the first time ever. Individually, Lacie ended the season with First Team All-America honors on bars and is hungry to do...

This week we are thrilled to be joined by seven-time All-American and rising senior on the Utah gymnastics team, Ella Zirbes. Ella is known not only for her beautiful gymnastics but also for being an advocate for mental health in the sport as someone who has very publicly struggled with performance anxiety. We dive deeper into the struggles she’s faced and how she’s learned to manage her anxiety while competing. We also talk about the pressure and expectations that come with representing a program with as rich a legacy as the Red Rocks, dealing with social media, and...

In this month's episode of Mental Gymnastics, Dr. JD Barton sits down with Maggie Nichols, a 2015 World Team Champion and floor exercise bronze medalist, as well as an eight-time NCAA Champion during her career as an Oklahoma Sooner. She talks about the disappointment of not making the 2016 Olympic team, the pandemic abruptly ending her career, navigating body image issues in the sport, the attention that came with Athlete A, finding joy at Oklahoma, and more!

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Lee B, Cookiemaster, Happy Girl, Erica S, Semflam, Amy C, Becca S, Cathleen R...

This is the 8th and final episode of the Recruit Reflection series, brought to you by Full Out Collegiate Recruiting. This week, we have one of our most interesting recruit perspectives yet: Caroline Walker from Air Force. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to get into a military academy or what Air Force cadets experience, this episode is a must-listen. We also talk about the U.S. Classic and share our thoughts and highlights from the competition, from Katelyn Ohashi just missing out on qualifying for Championships to Reese Esponda proving to be a real contender. We a...

This is Episode 7 of the Recruit Reflection series, brought to you by Full Out Collegiate Recruiting, and this week, for the first time in the history of this series, we are joined by a club coach! We are so grateful to be joined by Rachael Tracy Gardner, the head coach at Cincinnati Gymnastics Academy, where she coaches Levels 8 through Elite. She joins us to talk about all things recruiting from the perspective of a club coach, covering everything from athletes receiving recruiting mail to navigating the natural feelings of jealousy among teammates, how she handles college coaches coming into...

This is episode 6 of the Recruit Reflection series, brought to you by Full Out Collegiate Recruiting, and this week we're joined by future Iowa Hawkeye Morgan Braun. Morgan is coming off her most successful Level 10 season yet, which included competing at the 2026 Nastia Liukin Cup and finishing second in the all-around and on bars at the 2026 Level 10 National Championships. As she gears up for her senior season, she joins us to look back on her incredible year, talk about the recruiting experience, and share how she decided on Iowa.

Check out our feature on Simpson College: https...

This week, we're joined by Amika Every, an elite gymnast from Aruba who is making history as the first Aruban gymnast to commit to competing in college gymnastics. In May, Amika announced her commitment to Southern Connecticut State University. Shortly afterward, we had the chance to chat with her about what led to that decision and how she first discovered college gymnastics. We also talked about life in Aruba and some fun topics, including her mom's bread shop, which is apparently pretty well known on the island.

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Lee B...

This week on Mental Gymnastics, Dr. JD Barton sits down with Ebee Price, one of the most accomplished gymnasts of her generation. A 2012 Olympic alternate, 2014 American Cup champion, and winner of the 2013 — 14 World Cup All-Around Series, Ebee went on to have even more success at Stanford, where she became a 2x NCAA champion, Pac-12 Gymnast of the Year, AAI Award winner, and one of the most decorated gymnasts in program history.
In this conversation, Ebee reflects on the unique challenge of being an Olympic alternate, the pressures of balancing athletic and academic success at Stanford, and the expectations th...

This is Episode Four of the Recruit Reflection Series, sponsored by Full Out Collegiate Recruiting. This week, we are joined by Claire Donahue, a D3 gymnast who recently transferred from Wisconsin Whitewater to Wisconsin Stout. Claire joins us to talk about her initial recruiting journey as a Level 10, where she dealt with a lot of injuries and didn’t receive much interest from schools. She also talks about being dismissed from the team at Whitewater and making the decision to enter the transfer portal. Claire eventually found her home at Wisconsin Stout and is a great example of perseverance an...

This is Episode 3 of the Recruit Reflection Series, sponsored by Full Out Collegiate Recruiting.

This week, we’re joined by Mya Jett, an uncommitted gymnast in the Class of 2027. 

Mya was originally committed to Iowa State on a full athletic scholarship, but as many unfortunately know, the program was cut in March, leaving several gymnasts — including Mya — without a home. Now heading into her senior year, Mya is navigating the recruiting process once again. Her story highlights just how competitive college recruiting has become, especially in this new era of roster limits, transfer portal movement, and tal...

This is Episode 2 of the Recruit Reflection Series, sponsored by Full Out Collegiate Recruiting.

This week, we're joined by Rehna Saalinger, a rising sophomore at Brown University. She was a staple in the beam lineup during her freshman season, scoring as high as a 9.85 in her collegiate debut and earning GEC Newcomer of the Week honors.

Rehna joins us to talk about her recruiting journey as a first-year Level 10 gymnast who was limited to one event due to injury, and how she got herself on coaches' radars. She discusses what led her to Brown, what...

‘Tis the season for Recruit Reflections! It’s that time of year when we kick off our Recruit Reflection series once again for Season 4, sponsored by Full Out Collegiate Recruiting. We’re so excited to begin with three athletes who are not only among the top Level 10 gymnasts in the country, but are also teammates at Brandy Johnson’s in Florida.

We are joined by Imani White, who was originally committed to Cal before ultimately switching her commitment to Mizzou. She is a four-time Level 10 National Champion, a four-time Nastia Cup qualifier, and will be headed to Mizzou t...

Dr. JD Barton sits down with Dr. Nicole Hayes, who served as the UCLA gymnastics team psychologist from 2019 to 2023, to discuss body image in and out of the gym, the impact of social media and NIL, navigating injuries, academic pressure, and more.

Thank you to our monthly Patreon supporters: 

Lee B, Cookiemaster, Happy Girl, Erica S, Semflam, Amy C, Maria L, Becca S, Cathleen R, Faith, Kerry M, Derek H, Emily, Sharon B, MSU, Kimberly G, Lela M, Mara L, Jenna A, Alex M, Dana, Lidia, Maria P, Alicia O, Cristina K, Hayley B, Bethany J...

This week, we break down the latest NCAA coaching changes and transfer portal news, share highlights from the 2026 Development Program National Championships, discuss Ana Bărbosu’s suspension, and more.

Later in the episode (around the 43-minute mark), we’re joined by Kailin Chio following the conclusion of her standout sophomore season at LSU. Chio made program history this year, recording 13 perfect 10s — the most ever by an LSU gymnast in a single season — and becoming the first LSU gymnast to earn a perfect 10 at nationals. She also captured the SEC all-around and vault titles, was named SEC Gymna...

We’re kicking off May with a jam-packed episode. We’ve got one of UCLA’s star freshmen, Ashlee Sullivan, on the show, plus there has been so much news between coaching changes and the transfer portal, so we have a lot to unpack.

Ashlee Sullivan is a four-time U.S. National Team member, an alternate for the 2025 Worlds team, the 2025 Winter Cup all-around champion, and now an NCAA All-American on floor after wrapping up her freshman season at UCLA. This season, she was a key contributor for the Bruins on vault, bars, and floor, posting career highs...

In this episode of Mental Gymnastics, Dr. JD Barton sits down with Ilka Juk, who represented Canada and Hungary as an elite gymnast and went on to compete collegiately at LIU and Iowa.

Ilka looks back on the abusive coaching she experienced in Canada, her struggles with OCD, how she knew it was time to walk away from elite gymnastics, and how her career has shaped the coach she is today.

Thank you to our monthly Patreon supporters: 

Lee B, Cookiemaster, Happy Girl, Erica S, Semflam, Amy C, Maria L, Becca S, Cathleen R...

This week, we are joined by our correspondent JD, who was on the floor in Fort Worth for the 2026 NCAA Championships. We talk about the highs and lows of the competition — from Minnesota upsetting UCLA to advance to their first final ever, to Kailin Chio being a 10 machine, to our thoughts on the outcome of the meet, and more — plus we share some of our hopes and predictions for offseason transfers.

Thank you to our monthly Patreon supporters: 

Lee B, Cookiemaster, Happy Girl, Erica S, Semflam, Amy C, Maria L, Becca S, Cathleen R, Faith, Kerry...

This week we look back at NCAA Regionals and discuss some of the highlights, we preview the upcoming NCAA Championships and we have an interview with Big Ten Freshman of the Year — Arianna Ostrum — who helped her team pull off an incredible upset to punch a ticket to Fort Worth! 

Thank you to our monthly Patreon supporters: 

Lee B, Cookiemaster, Happy Girl, Erica S, Semflam, Amy C, Maria L, Becca S, Cathleen R, Faith, Kerry M, Derek H, Sharon B, Randee B, MSU, Kimberly G, Lela M, Mara L, Jenna A, Alex M,, Kelsey, Lidia, Maria...

This week we look back at NCAA Regionals and discuss some of the highlights, we preview the upcoming NCAA Championships and we have an interview with Big Ten Freshman of the Year — Arianna Ostrum — who helped her team pull off an incredible upset to punch a ticket to Fort Worth! 

Thank you to our monthly Patreon supporters: 

Lee B, Cookiemaster, Happy Girl, Erica S, Semflam, Amy C, Maria L, Becca S, Cathleen R, Faith, Kerry M, Derek H, Sharon B, Randee B, MSU, Kimberly G, Lela M, Mara L, Jenna A, Alex M,, Kelsey, Lidia, Maria...

In the latest episode of Mental Gymnastics, Dr. JD Barton is joined by Jacey Vore, a two-time Big Ten Champion at the University of Michigan. Before her collegiate career, Jacey was one of the nation’s top Level 10 gymnasts, earning the 2019 Level 10 National All-Around title, qualifying for the Nastia Cup three times, and finishing as a two-time runner-up in the event.

At Michigan, Jacey became a consistent presence in the Wolverines’ bar and beam lineups. Behind the scenes, however, she faced a significant challenge: an unexpected and intense mental block on vault that sidelined her from the even...

This week we’re excited to bring you this interview with the talented Maggie Slife, who is currently dominating her junior season at Air Force! A two-time Mountain West Gymnast of the Year, she has also earned Specialist of the Year honors across the all-around and every event. Maggie holds multiple program and conference records, including a 9.975 on bars and beam and a 39.675 in the all-around, and ranks among the top eight gymnasts in the nation on bars and in the all-around. Since this interview was recorded ahead of conference championships, she has continued to build on an already hi...

This week we’re joined by Ava Jordan, a junior at the University of Michigan. In her freshman year, she competed on vault in all but one meet, notching a season-best 9.85 in her very first collegiate appearance. She took things up a notch during her sophomore season, consistently competing in both the vault and bars lineups and earning her first career 9.9 score on bars at the Big Ten Championships.

Now in her junior season, she’s making an even bigger contribution to the Wolverines by adding beam to the mix and scoring career highs on all three even...

This week's guests are sisters Morgan Price and Frankie Price.

Morgan Price spent the first three seasons of her college career at Fisk University, competing for the first HBCU gymnastics team. She won six WCGNIC national titles and became the first HBCU gymnast to score a 10.0, earning the mark on uneven bars during her junior season. Now a senior at the University of Arkansas, she recently made history again as the first Razorback gymnast to score a 10.0 on vault.

She is closing out her career alongside her sister, Frankie, a mainstay in Arkansas’ vault and fl...

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Today, we’re reflecting on our trip to the University of Oklahoma, where we were lucky enough to tour their multimillion-dollar facility, watch practice ahead of the biggest regular-season meet of the year, and spend one-on-one time with the legendary KJ Kindler. We also break down highlights from the meet and share our NCAA predictions just past the halfway point of the season!

Thank you to our monthly Patreon supporters: 

Lee B...

We’re so excited to kick off a new monthly series, Mental Gymnastics, with Dr. JD Barton (who you may also recognize as our West Coast correspondent)! This series creates space for retired gymnasts to share their stories, memories, struggles, and triumphs from their time in the sport.

Our first guest needs no introduction. She’s a 2020 Olympian, 2025 NCAA and Big Ten floor champion, and queen of artistry — Brooklyn Moors. Brooklyn joins us to talk about working through a mental block that persisted throughout her career, having her Olympic dream delayed by the pandemic, and how she learne...

This week, we’re excited to be joined by Theresa Kulikowski-Gillespie, a 1995 Team World bronze medalist and Olympic alternate for the gold-medal-winning 1996 U.S. women’s gymnastics team. Theresa competed collegiately at the University of Utah, where she was a 14-time All-American and won three individual NCAA titles — including the all-around and balance beam as a freshman in 1999.

Following her gymnastics career, Theresa served as a physician assistant in the U.S. Army from 2009 to 2012, including a deployment to Iraq from 2010 to 2011. Today, she runs My Mindful Medicine, where she helps people heal and become the best versio...

Our guest this week is truly taking the world by storm. You may have seen her soaring 400 feet above New York City in a partnership with Red Bull and Rimmel London — or maybe you caught her on the SEC Network this past weekend, helping her team secure their first win over LSU in a decade.

We’re thrilled to be joined by Georgia GymDogs junior Lily Smith. With just two competitions under her belt this season, Lily is already racking up individual titles — winning five event titles across six routines — while helping lead Georgia to season-opening victories over Ohi...

Welcome to our final Coaches’ Corner interview of the 2026 NCAA season. We’ve got another new face on the show, and we’re very excited about this one — Ashley Johnston, who is entering her fourth season as head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Ashley was an incredible athlete in her own right before becoming a coach. She was a 10-time All-American during her career at Alabama and helped lead the Tide to two SEC titles and two NCAA championships. As a coach, she has continued that success, keeping the program nationally competitive and guiding Alabama to back-to...

With the first week of the 2026 NCAA gymnastics season in the books, we catch up with our West Coast correspondent, JD Barton, who was in Seattle for the Best of the West meet featuring UCLA, Cal, Oregon State and Washington. We share some of our thoughts on the competition, plus JD also had a chance to chat with Jade Carey before the meet.

Thank you to our monthly Patreon supporters: 

Lee B, Cookiemaster, Happy Girl, Erica S, Semflam, Amy C, Maria L, Becca S, Cathleen R, Faith, Kerry M, Derek H, Martin, Sharon B, Randee B...

Happy New Year! As promised, we’re back with another Coaches Corner interview as we kick off the road to the 2026 NCAA season.

We’re excited to welcome a new face to the show — Washington head coach Jessa Hansen Parker — as she joins us to preview what’s ahead for the Huskies. Jessa enters her second year at the helm of Washington, which also marks the program’s second season competing in the Big Ten.

Last year gave Husky fans plenty to celebrate: the program recorded its second-highest attendance in history, four GymDawgs qualified to regionals as...

This week, our friend JD Barton heads to Stanford to catch the team’s final intrasquad before the holiday break and sit down with head coach Tabitha Yim to preview the 2026 season. Tabitha breaks down what fans can expect from an exciting class of newcomers — including Olympians Ana Bărbosu and Levi Jung Ruivivar — along with the team’s biggest strengths, the momentum from winning its first ACC Championship last season, and the experiences that have shaped her coaching journey. Plus, JD shares what stood out most to him from the intrasquad.

Thank you to our monthly Patreon s...

This week, we’re joined by one of the most legendary head coaches in college gymnastics: KJ Kindler, head coach of the seven-time NCAA champion Oklahoma Sooners.

After missing the NCAA finals in 2024, Oklahoma rebounded in dominant fashion to win the national title in 2025. As the Sooners prepare for the 2026 season and their second year in the SEC, Kindler reflects on last season, how the team used doubt as motivation, and what lies ahead. She also discusses the impact of an exciting freshman class and athletes who stepped up their game in the offseason.

Thank yo...