The best gymnasts in the country are tumbling into Texas where they'll compete for trophies and titles at the 2023 NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships.
The athletes arrived in Fort Worth on Tuesday night for a welcome event at River Ranch Stockyards. They posed for photos on the red carpet, did some interviews, took turns sitting on a Texas Longhorn, and relaxed in Cowtown before things get serious.
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WATCH HEREEight teams - California, Denver, Florida, Kentucky, LSU, Oklahoma, UCLA, and Utah - will face off at Dickies Arena where the Sooners hope to win their sixth title in the last decade and earn national champion status once again.
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SIGN UP One of the biggest names in the competition is 2020 Olympic silver medalist Jordan Chiles. She is competing with her teammates from UCLA, but she calls Houston her home. That's where she will train as she sets her sights on the Olympic games next summer in Paris.
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"I don't even consider myself famous, which is pretty funny because a lot of people are like, 'Oh my gosh, you're so famous' this, that, and the other," Chiles told NBC 5. "I personally am just enjoying the inspirational aspect of things. Just having the younger generation look up to me and just, you know, being able to find that love in the sport, especially knowing that it's like a really hard sport. So I think it's honestly just me being me. So just being able to be who I want to be and, you know, enjoy the moment."
"We've got some world-class athletes here," said Jason Sand, executive director of the Fort Worth Sports Commission. "They're all going to be competing for a national championship and for, for worth to be able to host this and showcase all the things our city has to offer on a national and international stage. We're really excited."
The experts in women's gymnastics expect Chiles to win the NCAA All-Around title, and they say Oklahoma is the team that can't be beaten.
The semifinals are Thursday at Dickies Arena, and the finals are on Saturday. Tickets are still available.
