McKayla Maroney

Total Medals:
Olympics:
Worlds:
Appearances:,,

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McKayla Maroney is one of the most dominant vaulters the sport has ever seen. Her score of 16.233 in Team Finals during the 2012 Olympics remains legendary. Never before had someone combined so much difficulty with so much technical execution. Despite having recorded the highest vault score at every stage of every major competition of her senior-level career, a fall in Event Finals demoted Maroney to second place. Her facial expressions during the medal ceremony would immediately go viral on the Internet.

Ironically, Maroney’s “not impressed” face as she reacted to winning “only” a silver medal probably did more to enhance her fame than winning an Olympic title in Event Finals ever could. Amongst gymnastics fans Maroney is known for her vaulting prowess, but she also had considerable AA potential having won the 2011 Jesolo title as a junior. Injuries seemed to sidetrack what could have been a standout AA career alongside a standout vaulting career. Maroney’s floor work at the 2011 World Championships to the old school tune of “Those Were the Days” also remains a classic.

Maroney also has considerable clout outside the gymnastics fanbase. Her personality, social media skills, and of course, a viral meme has given her an enormous fanbase to work with. McKayla’s recent passion has been pursuing a career in music.

World Championships & Olympic Competition:

Results:

2013
World Championships – 1st-VT
U.S. Championships – 1st-VT, FX
U.S. Classic, Chicago, Ill. – 1st-VT; 3rd-FX

2012
U.S. Olympic Trials, San Jose, Calif. – 1st-VT; 5th-FX; 7th-AA
U.S. Championships, St. Louis, Mo. –
U.S. Classic, Chicago, Ill. – 1st-VT
Olympic Games, London, England – 1st-Team; 2nd-VT
Jesolo – 1st-Team, VT; 4th-AA; 6th-FX

2011
World Championships, Tokyo, Japan – 1st-Team, VT
Jesolo – 1st-Team, AA, VT; 4th-FX; 5th-UB, BB(T)
U.S. Championships, Saint Paul, Minn. – 1st-VT; 2nd-AA; 5th-FX; 7th-BB
U.S. Classic, Chicago, Ill. – 5th-FX; 6th-BB

2010
Pan American Championships, Guadalajara, Mexico – 1st-Team, VT, FX
U.S. Championships, Hartford, Conn. – 1st-VT; 3rd-AA; 4th-FX(T); 7th-BB (Jr. Div.)
U.S. Classic, Chicago, Ill. – 2nd-VT(T); 5th-FX; 7th-AA (Jr. Div.)

2009
U.S. Championships, Dallas, Texas – 3rd-VT (Jr. Div.)

Articles Featuring McKayla Maroney:
McKayla Maroney: A Case Study of How Television Should Not Treat an Athlete
McKayla Maroney is Awesome (Part I)
McKayla Maroney is Awesome (Part II)

Gallery

President Barack Obama jokingly mimics U.S. Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney’s “not impressed” look while greeting members of the 2012 U.S. Olympic gymnastics teams in the Oval Office, Nov. 15, 2012. Steve Penny, USA Gymnastics President, and Savannah Vinsant laugh at left. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) This official White House photograph is being made available only for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photograph. The photograph may not be manipulated in any way and may not be used in commercial or political materials, advertisements, emails, products, promotions that in any way suggests approval or endorsement of the President, the First Family, or the White House.Ê

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Results are taken from Score for Score, The Gymternet, GymnasticGreats, My Meet Scores, Gymn-Forum, the official websites of various national gymnastics federations, newspaper clippings, classic gymnastics magazines, and in some cases, were provided by the gymnasts themselves. An explanation for the meaning of these symbols can be found here.