McKayla Maroney
Encyclopedia
McKayla Maroney is an elite artistic gymnast from the U.S.A. who is best known for her execution of the Amanar
vault (SV 6.5) – a Yurchenko
-entry vault followed by two and a half twists in the air during a laid-out back salto
. She is the 2011 U.S. champion on the vault, having bested 2010 World Championships vault winner Alicia Sacramone at the 2011 U.S. National Championships in St. Paul, Minnesota
. She is a 2011 World Champion with the U.S. team and the 2011 World Champion on vault.
in August.
’s 2010 CoverGirl Classic in Chicago, Illinois, Maroney tied for second on vault with gymnast Lexie Priessman. Maroney also placed fifth on floor exercise and seventh all-around.
Maroney won the vault title at the 2010 U.S. Junior National Championships in Hartford, Connecticut during August 2010. She also placed third all-around, tied for fourth on floor exercise and placed seventh on balance beam.
At the 2010 Senior Pan American Championships in September
, Maroney captured the gold medals on vault and floor exercise, as well as a share of the U.S. team gold.
Trophy in Italy
during March
, Maroney bested U.S. gymnast Jordyn Wieber
to win the all-around title, and she won a share of the team gold medal with the U.S.A. She also placed fourth on floor exercise, fifth on uneven bars and tied for fifth on balance beam.
In July
2011, Maroney placed fifth on floor exercise and sixth on balance beam at the 2011 CoverGirl Classic in Chicago
, Illinois
.
During August, she finished second (115.150) to all-around winner Jordyn Wieber at the 2011 U.S. Senior National Gymnastics Championships. where she competed the three-and-a-half twisting salto on floor exercise during both nights of competition. With the help of her Amanar, she also won the U.S. vault title ahead of current Vault World Champion Alicia Sacramone. Maroney placed fifth on floor exercise and seventh on balance beam.
Following two selection camps at the Karolyi Ranch in New Waverly, Texas
, Maroney was named to the U.S. team for October's 2011 Gymnastics World Championships in Tokyo
, Japan
.
During the preliminary round of competition at 2011 Worlds, Maroney delivered an excellent performance on vault, qualifying in first place to the vault final (15.533, 14.633). She also finished 12th in the all-around (56.324) but was ineligible for the all-around final due to the "two athletes per country" rule for finals qualifiers. The skills Maroney performed included an Amanar on vault (15.533), a tucked double-back dismount on beam (13.30), and a 3 1/2-twist and a 2 1/2 twist to tuck front on floor (13.833). The U.S. team finished the preliminary round at Worlds in first place (234.253), ahead of Russia (231.062), China (230.370) and Romania (227.228).
In the women's team finals competition at Worlds, Maroney contributed to the U.S. team effort on vault and floor. She vaulted a terrific Amanar to earn a meet-high score of 16.033. On floor, she performed a 3 1/2 twist, a 2 1/2 twist to a layout front full and a 1 1/2 to double tuck (14.566). The U.S. won the team gold medal (179.411) over second-place Russia (175.329) and third-place China (172.820).
In the vault finals, Maroney captured the vault gold medal with excellent form on her Amanar (15.8) and her laid-out Podkopayeva (14.8). She bested second-place finisher Oksana Chusovitina of Germany by more than .55 (15.3 vault average versus 14.733 vault average). With her victory, Maroney earned the third world championships gold medal on vault in a row for the U.S., following Kayla Williams in 2009 and Alicia Sacramone in 2010.
Amanar
The Amanar is an artistic gymnastics vault, first performed by Simona Amanar at the 2000 Olympics.Performance at an Olympics or World Championships is required to get naming credit. The Amanar belongs to the Yurchenko vault family, and contains two and a half twists in the backward salto.The skill...
vault (SV 6.5) – a Yurchenko
Yurchenko
Yurchenko is a Ukrainian surname that may refer to:* Aleksandr Yurchenko , Russian footballer* David Yurchenko , Russian footballer* Denys Yurchenko , Ukrainian pole vaulter...
-entry vault followed by two and a half twists in the air during a laid-out back salto
Salto
Salto may refer to:*Salto, a Latin word for "to leap/jump", and in gymnastics refers to a somersault* Glasflügel H-101 "Salto" -Organisations:...
. She is the 2011 U.S. champion on the vault, having bested 2010 World Championships vault winner Alicia Sacramone at the 2011 U.S. National Championships in St. Paul, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. She is a 2011 World Champion with the U.S. team and the 2011 World Champion on vault.
2009 Season
Competing at her first Nationals, Maroney placed third on vault at the 2009 U.S. Junior National Championships in Dallas, TexasTexas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
in August.
2010 Season
At JulyJuly
July is the seventh month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of seven months with the length of 31 days. It is, on average, the warmest month in most of the Northern hemisphere and the coldest month in much of the Southern hemisphere...
’s 2010 CoverGirl Classic in Chicago, Illinois, Maroney tied for second on vault with gymnast Lexie Priessman. Maroney also placed fifth on floor exercise and seventh all-around.
Maroney won the vault title at the 2010 U.S. Junior National Championships in Hartford, Connecticut during August 2010. She also placed third all-around, tied for fourth on floor exercise and placed seventh on balance beam.
At the 2010 Senior Pan American Championships in September
September
September is the 9th month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of four months with a length of 30 days.September in the Southern Hemisphere is the seasonal equivalent of March in the Northern Hemisphere....
, Maroney captured the gold medals on vault and floor exercise, as well as a share of the U.S. team gold.
2011 Season
At the 2011 City of JesoloJesolo
thumb|250px|Location of Jesolo in the province of Venice.Jesolo is a town and comune in the province of Venice, Italy.-Geography:...
Trophy in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
during March
March
March is in present time held to be the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is one of the seven months which are 31 days long....
, Maroney bested U.S. gymnast Jordyn Wieber
Jordyn Wieber
Jordyn Marie Wieber is an American artistic gymnast. She is the 2011 All-Around World Champion, the 2011 U.S. Senior National Champion and the 2011 American Cup Champion. She was also the 2008 U.S. Junior National Champion and the 2009 American Cup Champion.-Personal life:Wieber was born in...
to win the all-around title, and she won a share of the team gold medal with the U.S.A. She also placed fourth on floor exercise, fifth on uneven bars and tied for fifth on balance beam.
In July
July
July is the seventh month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of seven months with the length of 31 days. It is, on average, the warmest month in most of the Northern hemisphere and the coldest month in much of the Southern hemisphere...
2011, Maroney placed fifth on floor exercise and sixth on balance beam at the 2011 CoverGirl Classic in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
.
During August, she finished second (115.150) to all-around winner Jordyn Wieber at the 2011 U.S. Senior National Gymnastics Championships. where she competed the three-and-a-half twisting salto on floor exercise during both nights of competition. With the help of her Amanar, she also won the U.S. vault title ahead of current Vault World Champion Alicia Sacramone. Maroney placed fifth on floor exercise and seventh on balance beam.
Following two selection camps at the Karolyi Ranch in New Waverly, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, Maroney was named to the U.S. team for October's 2011 Gymnastics World Championships in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
During the preliminary round of competition at 2011 Worlds, Maroney delivered an excellent performance on vault, qualifying in first place to the vault final (15.533, 14.633). She also finished 12th in the all-around (56.324) but was ineligible for the all-around final due to the "two athletes per country" rule for finals qualifiers. The skills Maroney performed included an Amanar on vault (15.533), a tucked double-back dismount on beam (13.30), and a 3 1/2-twist and a 2 1/2 twist to tuck front on floor (13.833). The U.S. team finished the preliminary round at Worlds in first place (234.253), ahead of Russia (231.062), China (230.370) and Romania (227.228).
In the women's team finals competition at Worlds, Maroney contributed to the U.S. team effort on vault and floor. She vaulted a terrific Amanar to earn a meet-high score of 16.033. On floor, she performed a 3 1/2 twist, a 2 1/2 twist to a layout front full and a 1 1/2 to double tuck (14.566). The U.S. won the team gold medal (179.411) over second-place Russia (175.329) and third-place China (172.820).
In the vault finals, Maroney captured the vault gold medal with excellent form on her Amanar (15.8) and her laid-out Podkopayeva (14.8). She bested second-place finisher Oksana Chusovitina of Germany by more than .55 (15.3 vault average versus 14.733 vault average). With her victory, Maroney earned the third world championships gold medal on vault in a row for the U.S., following Kayla Williams in 2009 and Alicia Sacramone in 2010.