University of Minnesota Athletics
My Gymnastics Story: Ciara Gardner
11/10/2015 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
Nov. 10, 2015
The sport of gymnastics is no easy feat. The years of tough training both mentally and physically push gymnasts to their limits in order to succeed at the highest level. Gophersports.com sat down with the University of Minnesota women's gymnastics team to learn where each of these 14 women came from in order to call themselves Golden Gophers.
Gymnastics is definitely not an easy sport, but it's been the best part of my life since I was 5-years-old. It has taught me so many things, more than I could possibly name in a single post. It's taught me discipline, how to overcome obstacles and most of all, the sport has taught me to have confidence in myself and the way I look at life, because that was something I struggled with at an early age. This sport has definitely brought it out of me. It's taught me to have fun with whatever I'm doing, whether it's competing, at practice, or just in life in general. I've become such a hard worker since I've been in this sport because now, I know how to push myself further than I thought I could be pushed. It's taught me how to be mentally tough and not let negative things affect my thoughts. Gymnastics has done way more for me then I could've ever imagined and I'm so grateful for that.
My favorite thing about gymnastics is pushing myself through all the obstacles and proving to myself that there is no limit to how far I can go. I also love the chance to get to travel with my teammates - I LOVE being able to go different places. When I was younger, I never really got to travel anywhere. It's awesome that this sport allows me to do that.
I absolutely love being a gymnast for the University of Minnesota. Being able to compete for a Big Ten school is unreal. It's amazing being valued not only as a gymnast, but as an individual as well. I'm going to have so many lifelong friendships that I never thought I would've had! Being a U of M gymnast has made me such a strong individual. I'm physically getting stronger every day, it's opened me up to a lot of new things and strengthened my personality even more than I could've ever imagined. I'm apart of such an amazing team and I'm so happy I made the decision to come to the University of Minnesota to pursue my dreams!
Stay Golden!
- Ciara Gardner
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