PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Jade Carey went into the U.S. Gymnastics Olympic Trials with a question hanging over her head: Would she make the Olympic team?
Although she had made the squad as an event specialist in 2020, she had been passed over for other gymnasts for teams that represented the U.S. in recent years.
When she got to the Trials, there were unfortunately a few gymnasts who got injured. Jade still had to perform, though on a stage perhaps just as pressure filled as the Olympics.
“I’m just really proud of how far I’ve come and that I never gave up,” reflected Jade. “There were definitely hard days in there where I was like, ‘I don’t know if this is going to turn out the way I want it to in the end.’”
The trials and tribulations continued for Jade at the Olympics.
She got sick before her first competition day, which affected her endurance.
She fell during her floor routine but was able to wipe the experience and show up for her team on the vault.
Those seven seconds helped pave the way for the moment she — and everyone else on her squad — had longed for for three years.