KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Several Kansas City-area gymnasts are competing at the Xfinity U.S. Gymnastics Championships next Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas.
It's the last big meet before the Olympic Trials, and five gymnasts GAGE Center in Blue Springs will be competing.
Camarah Williams with EDGE Gymnastics in Riverside also is competing at U.S. Gymnastics Championships next Saturday.
GAGE Center gymnasts are not strangers to this level of gymnastics.
It's known for some of the gymnastics world's biggest names, including Leanne Wong and Aleah Finnegan.
Wong is fighting for her spot on Team USA at the Olympics this year with help from her coaches at the University of Florida. Finnegan qualified to the 2024 Olympics, but will be representing the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines.
KSHB 41 reporter Elyse Schoenig got to sit down with the gymnasts GAGE is sending to Championship.
“I kind of just fell in love with it, and I've stuck with it my whole life,” gymnast Amelia Disadore said.
Sticking with their dreams turned into sticking the landing in the country's biggest arenas.
“I do a handspring, layout, layout (on beam), so it’s a three-skill series. So I do a handspring, and then two layouts, so handsprings without my arms," gymnast Marissa Neal said.
Neal said it takes consistency.
“I have to have a little bit more pressure because it is a bigger competition. But at the same time, I need to stay calm as well," gymnast Evelynn Lowe said.
Lowe said the pressure is power, but so is their passion for gymnastics.
It's part of what makes training special for twin sisters, Malea and Annalisa Milton.
“We help each other constantly, and when one of us is having a bad day, we encourage each other and it’s just fun sharing it with each other," Malea Milton said.
It gives their journeys direction. So when they get where they're going, they'll stick it.
“Set goals for yourself and just have fun with it, that would be the biggest thing," Malea and Annalisa Milton said. "And to not let anything get in your way. If you have a dream, go for it."