Advertise on podcast: GymnasticsVille Podcast

Trevor Howard almost quit gymnastics after missing teams by one place, year after year. His mom told him something that changed everything. What followed was a career most gymnasts only dream about. On this episode of Back to Basics, Trevor sits down with Mubarak Simmons to share his full journey, from growing up in Columbus, Ohio to becoming a 7x All-American and NCAA National Champion at Penn State, to earning a spot on the 2019 World Championships team in Stuttgart alongside Sam Mikulak, Yul Moldauer, and Shane Wiskus. He opens up about the "iron sharpens iron" mindset that got him there, what it was like representing Team USA on the world stage, and how COVID derailed his Olympic path. Today, Trevor performs as a Tumble Monkey in Disney's Festival of the Lion King at Animal Kingdom and runs ETHIICKS, his holistic wellness company built on everything gymnastics taught him. This conversation covers mindset, adversity, purpose, and what it really takes to reach the highest level. FOLLOW TREVOR HOWARD: Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, TikTok: Coach Trevor Howard ETHIICKS: @ethiicks FOLLOW GYMNASTICSVILLE: Website: https://gymnasticsville.com  Instagram: https://instagram.com/gymnasticsville  TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@gymnasticsvillehq  Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/gymcrewtalent  Facebook: https://facebook.com/gymnasticsville  WATCH THE FULL VIDEO EPISODE: YouTube: https://youtu.be/5drpDx-pRSc?si=lYtu0TflRY8jLZDM

2008 Olympic Bronze Medalist Justin Spring returns to the GymnasticsVille Podcast. Now in his fifth season at Alabama Gymnastics and second as Associate Head Coach, Justin opens up about Alabama's preseason, the challenge of building championship culture in the modern era, what he learned calling the Paris Olympics live for NBC, the full-circle moment watching Team USA win bronze in Paris exactly like his own 2008 team, and why the mental game is the only thing that separates Olympic champions from everyone else. Topics covered: Alabama preseason and what Spring is building in 2027 Culture transformation and the microwave society athlete What Justin looks for when evaluating gymnasts The transition from men's to women's collegiate coaching How he landed the NBC Olympics broadcast gig Tim Daggett's three binders and the Paris prep story The Sasha Artemev story from Beijing 2008 team finals Sports psychology as a daily training requirement Why the mental game is the only X factor come postseason Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gymnasticsville-podcast/id1236969576 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3EZvLhd543Iw0YlwlkhBds?si=kURxLtagT2S98aqLTYOQkA&utm_source=sms Visit GymnasticsVille: https://gymnasticsville.com

Felecia Mulkey has won every national championship acrobatics & tumbling has ever held. She joins GymnasticsVille to talk about helping create the sport itself, building a dynasty at Baylor, and her mission to open more doors for women in college sports. Felecia Mulkey is a trailblazer. The head coach of Baylor Acrobatics & Tumbling joins GymnasticsVille to discuss building a dynasty, creating a new NCAA sport, and why her mission is far bigger than championships. 00:00 – Introduction 01:14 – Felecia's journey from high school gymnast to collegiate pioneer 03:22 – Why "Acrobatics & Tumbling"? The strategic naming process 07:54 – Launching the Oregon program and winning the first championships 12:19 – Transitioning to Baylor and building a powerhouse 16:34 – Acrobatics & Tumbling is the only sport created at the collegiate level besides football 19:57 – Managing a championship culture and fighting complacency 22:42 – "This was never about winning." Felecia's mission to create opportunities for women 27:16 – The impact of A&T's elevation to NCAA championship sport status 29:28 – Felecia's advice for young gymnasts: "Stay in the sport" 32:08 – The gymnastics skills every A&T athlete needs 35:17 – Felecia's coaching philosophy: "This team has won nothing" 38:41 – What's next for Baylor and the future of the sport 41:22 – Conclusion Learn more about Baylor Acrobatics & Tumbling: https://baylorbears.com/sports/acrobatics-tumbling Find every program that sponsors the sport: https://thencata.org/sports/2022/7/22/NCATA%20Member%20Institutions.aspx Follow GymnasticsVille: 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gymnasticsville/ 🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/gymnasticsville 👍 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gymnasticsville

Tony Beck was named the seventh head coach in the history of Penn State men's gymnastics on May 15, 2026. He replaced Randy Jepson, the man who recruited him, coached him, and mentored him for the better part of two decades. This is his first long-form interview since taking the job. Mubarak coached Tony his junior and senior years of high school in eastern Pennsylvania, before Tony ever put on a Penn State singlet. That history runs through the whole conversation. In this episode: The night he got the call, and what it meant when Randy Jepson showed up that same night Why Ohio State was the dream school before Penn State was Building the first boys program at Centre Elite Gymnastics with five kids in a gym so small the parallel bars had to be offset Coaching Stephen Nedoroscik and Josh Karnes, and the two very different kinds of toughness they represent The analytics platform he coded himself to track his team's hit percentages and routine scores Following Gene Whetstone, Carl Schier, and Randy Jepson at a program with 12 national team titles What he tells young gymnasts who are not the most talented athlete in the gym This is part one of a two part series. Part two will be recorded on location at Penn State in September, in the gym with Coach Beck and members of his team. Follow Tony Beck on Instagram: @tbeck021 Follow Penn State men's gymnastics: @psugym Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/sEwSxy_gZAQ Read the full article: https://gymnasticsville.com/tony-beck-on-taking-over-penn-state-mens-gymnastics/ Follow GymnasticsVille: Website: https://gymnasticsville.com Instagram: @gymnasticsville TikTok: @gymnasticsvillehq YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@gymnasticsville

Two Commonwealth Games silver medals. Three World Championships. A skill in the FIG Code of Points with her name on it. And then Mary-Anne "Mez" Monckton walked away from gymnastics entirely. This week on Back to Basics by GymnasticsVille, Mez joins the show to talk about the full arc: getting talent-ID'd by the Australian Institute of Sport at age 7, moving to Melbourne alone at 15, silver at Glasgow 2014, the ACL tear training for the Rio test event, retirement in 2017, and the night at a Calgary gym in 2023 when a coach's words made her cry on the floor and brought her back to the sport. Today Mez runs CAPTivate Adult Gymnastics in her hometown of Newcastle, Australia. In one year she has grown it from 20 athletes to more than 85, trained 10 coaches, and built a program proving it's never too late to fall back in love with gymnastics. Find CAPTivate: https://captivategymnastics.com.au Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/fuaM0dju-yk Follow GymnasticsVille: Instagram: @gymnasticsville TikTok: @gymnasticsvillehq X: @gymnasticsville Host: Mubarak Simmons, GymnasticsVille Host

World Champion Sean Townsend joins GymnasticsVille Host Mubarak Simmons to preview the 2026 U.S. Gymnastics Championships. Townsend won a World title on parallel bars in 2001, the first American man on a Worlds podium in 22 years, and trained alongside Mubarak at Houston Gymnastics Academy under coach Kevin Mazeika. Today he's the head coach there, with two of his own athletes competing in Phoenix this week. With Asher Hong, Brody Malone, and Donnell Whittenburg all out of the field, Townsend breaks down why he thinks Malone is playing the long game, names his five-man pick for the World team in Rotterdam, and explains why he believes the 2032 Olympic team could be the best in U.S. history. He also shares the untold story of competing at the 2001 World Championships in the weeks after 9/11, when his team was told they weren't going, then found out two weeks later that they were. This is the second of two GymnasticsVille previews ahead of Phoenix. Listen to the first, with Highland Park ISD Gymnastics Coach Justin James, wherever you get your podcasts. Read the full article: https://gymnasticsville.com/sean-townsend-2026-us-championships-preview/  Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gymnasticsville-podcast/id1236969576  Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3EZvLhd543Iw0YlwlkhBds?si=kURxLtagT2S98aqLTYOQkA&utm_source=sms  Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwVx7oVvYug  Follow GymnasticsVille: Instagram | TikTok @gymnasticsvillehq | X (GCTM)

She was told her athletic career was over. Nearly three decades later, Angela Fuller walked back into a gym and did something she had only ever done in her dreams. On this episode of Back to Basics, adult gymnast and NAIGC competitor Angela Fuller joins Mubarak Simmons to talk about the wake-up call that sent her back to the sport, what it takes to complete the grueling 14-event Omnithon, and why adult gymnastics is growing faster than most people realize. In this episode: The wake-up call that changed everything Discovering adult gymnastics through Chellsie Memmel Purpose over podium, and why competing as an adult feels so different What the Omnithon actually is, and what it takes to finish all 14 events Visualizing a skill for 27 years, then landing it on the first try back Why participation in adult gymnastics doubled this year Her trip to American Ninja Warrior Why it is never too late to go back Follow Angela Fuller on Instagram at @colofitnesschick and on TikTok at @thehappydanceninja. Follow GymnasticsVille on Instagram at @gymnasticsville TikTok @gymnasticsvillehq, and at gymnasticsville.com.

Three reigning champions are missing from the U.S. Championships entry list, and the men's World Championships team gets decided in Phoenix with no selection camp afterward. Host Mubarak Simmons is joined by Justin James, Highland Park ISD Gymnastics Coach, to preview everything happening at the 2026 Xfinity U.S. Gymnastics Championships, August 6-9. In this episode: why Asher Hong, Brody Malone, and Donnell Whittenburg are not competing, the three-way pommel horse battle between Stephen Nedoroscik, Patrick Hoopes, and Brandon Dang, the all-around favorites, why EVO Gymnastics is sending 16 athletes to Phoenix, rising names to watch, and what it will take for Team USA to qualify for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Predictions on the record from both hosts. Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gymnasticsville-podcast/id1236969576  Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3EZvLhd543Iw0YlwlkhBds?si=kURxLtagT2S98aqLTYOQkA&utm_source=sms  Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/zyDxnn9f-3s  Follow GymnasticsVille: Instagram: @gymnasticsville | TikTok @gymnasticsvillehq | X (GCTM) @gymcrewtalent

By numbers, World Gymnaestrada is the biggest gymnastics event on the planet, bigger than the Olympics, bigger than every sport at the Olympics combined. Most gymnastics fans have never heard of it. On this episode of Back to Basics, Mubarak Simmons sits down with Hayley Silberg, founder of CAPTivate Adult Gymnastics, one of Canada's only all-adult gymnastics clubs, with roughly 300 athletes training across multiple provinces. Hayley breaks down what World Gymnaestrada actually is: a non-competitive gymnastics festival held every four years that draws more than 20,000 participants from over 50 countries. No judges. No scores. Just gymnastics for the love of it, with performers ranging from toddlers to athletes in their 90s. We also get into how Hayley built CAPTivate from a single weekly performance team into a full club, why adult gymnastics is one of the fastest-growing corners of the sport, and why she believes it might be one of the best things you can do for your mental health. Plus: World Gymnaestrada is coming to North America for the first time ever. Lisbon, Portugal hosts in 2027, and Las Vegas makes history in 2031 as the first edition held outside Europe. Connect with CAPTivate: Instagram: @captivate.gymnastics Website: captivategymnastics.com Follow GymnasticsVille: Instagram: @gymnasticsville Website: gymnasticsville.com Subscribe to Back to Basics for more conversations with the coaches, athletes, and builders shaping the sport.

The Yul Moldauer comeback is no longer a question. It is a season, and it is going well. The 2020 Olympian and two-time World Championships bronze medalist joins GymnasticsVille for his second sit-down of 2026. Since we last spoke, Yul has won silver in the all-around and gold on parallel bars at Winter Cup, competed at the American Cup, and taken parallel bars gold at the Pan American Championships while helping Team USA punch its ticket to the 2026 World Championships. He is also back training at the University of Oklahoma under coach Mark Williams. In this episode, Yul talks about the wave of comebacks sweeping the sport, including Suni Lee, Jade Carey, Katelyn Ohashi, and Marvin Kimble, and why he was excited but not surprised by any of them. He gets into what an Olympic Games on home soil in Los Angeles would mean to him, builds his dream comeback roster on the men's side, and explains what pulled him back to Norman. He also breaks down the upgrades he is bringing to the Xfinity US Gymnastics Championships in Phoenix, August 6 to 9, and the mindset behind his 12 for 12 goal. In this episode: Reaction to the Suni Lee, Jade Carey, and Katelyn Ohashi comebacks Marvin Kimble's return and the bet with Asher Hong What LA 2028 on home soil would mean Yul's dream comeback team The move back to Oklahoma under Mark Williams New upgrades and the road to Rotterdam Follow Yul Moldauer at yulmoldauer.com and on Instagram @yul_moldauer Read the full article at gymnasticsville.com

Texas produces roughly a quarter of the nation's elite gymnasts. Until this year, it had zero Division I women's gymnastics programs. That just changed. On this episode, Texas coach and judge Justin James joins GymnasticsVille to break down Texas State University's historic launch of the first D1 women's gymnastics program in state history. Justin is the Head Girls Gymnastics Coach at Highland Park ISD, Director of Recruiting for the Texas Armadillos GymACT team, and a member of the Texas and National Gymnastics Judges Associations, with nearly 14 years as gymnastics director at Kingwood High School before that. We get into: - The Oklahoma connection behind Texas State's decision, and why the school's president credits OU head coach K.J. Kindler with helping him see it through - Why it took 40 years for a Texas school to go D1, from football economics to Title IX - Inside the Aggie Ascension, the group working to bring a varsity program to Texas A&M - Why Texas State's location makes it a recruiting goldmine - McMurry's surprise new program and the murky history of Houston Christian's old varsity status - Justin's read on the men's gymnastics scene heading into the Xfinity U.S. Championships and LA 2028 Read more at gymnasticsville.com  Watch the full video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/gKQSq5vRzU8  Follow Justin James: Instagram: @justinwjames X: @TheJustinJames Follow GymnasticsVille: Instagram: @gymnasticsville TikTok: @gymnasticsvillehq

Most coaches see gymnastics from one side of the table. DeShaun Holden has seen it from all of them. He competed. He judged. He coached. And now his gym, Top Notch Training, just took home NGA Club of the Year at the 2026 Georgia State Championships. In this episode, Mubarak Simmons and Kerry Adderly sit down with DeShaun Holden, owner and head coach of Top Notch Training Gym in Georgia, for a wide-ranging conversation covering the biggest storylines in gymnastics right now and DeShaun's own remarkable journey through the sport. Topics include: Reactions to the wave of elite comebacks from Katelyn Ohashi, Jade Carey, Marvin Kimble, and Stephen Nedoroscik DeShaun's path from athlete to certified judge at age 16, to Elite-level coach Navigating the NIL recruiting process as a parent, with his son signing to play D1 football The new NCAA five-year eligibility rule and what it means for athletes Results and takeaways from the 2026 Pan American Championships DeShaun's coaching philosophy and what he looks for in developing athletes The transition to the new 2026-2030 USAG Developmental Code of Points Building Top Notch Training from 19 kids and three months of rent money to NGA Club of the Year Follow DeShaun Holden and Top Notch Training Gym on Instagram at @tntgymnasticsatl and @coach_deshaun_top_notch_. Subscribe to GymnasticsVille for more conversations with the biggest names in NCAA and elite gymnastics.

Most people think gymnastics belongs to kids. Jenny Woudenberg and Hugh Smith are proving otherwise. In Episode 232 of the GymnasticsVille Podcast, we sit down with the co-founders of Adult Gymnastics Retreats to talk about the booming adult gymnastics movement, how they built a business combining gymnastics, wellness, and adventure travel, and why it's never too late to step back into the gym. Hugh spent 15 years on Canada's national gymnastics team and has coached for 25 years. Jenny built the retreat business from a postpartum search for something just for herself. Together they've created sold-out retreats everywhere from Cancun to Colombia to Malta. Topics covered: - The adult gymnastics movement and why it's exploding - How Adult Gymnastics Retreats got started - What a retreat actually looks like day to day - Breaking arrows and facing fears in Colombia - Training on the World Championships podium equipment - The push to add a masters category at FIG Worlds - 2026 retreats: Cancun, Colombia, and Salt Lake City Learn more: Website: https://adultgymnasticsretreats.com  Instagram: https://instagram.com/adultgymnasticsretreats  Read the full article: https://gymnasticsville.com/adult-gymnastics-retreats-jenny-woudenberg-hugh-smith  Subscribe to GymnasticsVille for more interviews from across the gymnastics world.

Sophia Campana joins Mubarak Simmons and Taqiy Simmons on the GymnasticsVille Podcast for one of our most powerful episodes yet. Sophia is an elite gymnast with dual American and Italian citizenship, 2021 Italian National Bars Champion, MTV Italy reality star, bestselling author, and empowerment coach with nearly one million followers on both Instagram and YouTube. This summer she is taking her Fire Within Experience Tour across the United States, Mexico, and Canada. In this episode we cover: The Fire Within Experience Tour and what to expect at each event Her Powerful Mind mentorship program and the 1% improvement concept Her journey from Colorado to competing for Italy's Serie A Life inside elite gymnastics and her role as ambassador of abuse prevention for the Italian Gymnastics Federation Her viral YouTube channel Sophialand and how it all started The Fire Within Leo collection just launched for pre-order Follow Sophia: Instagram: @sophia_campana YouTube: @Sophialand Website: sophiacampana.com Fire Within Leo: sophiacampana.com/en-us/products/fire-within-hot-pink-preorder  Follow GymnasticsVille: YouTube: @gymnasticsville Instagram: @gymnasticsville Website: gymnasticsville.com

Kevin Mazeika — USA Gymnastics Hall of Famer and three-time U.S. Olympic Men's Team Head Coach — sits down for his first-ever long-form podcast interview on GymnasticsVille Podcast Episode 2. Kevin has coached Team USA to back-to-back Olympic medals, including the 2004 Athens silver medal (the first non-boycotted Olympic team medal since 1932) and the 2008 Beijing bronze. Today he leads EVO Gymnastics in Sarasota, Florida, where Brody Malone and Donnell Whittenburg both won gold at the 2025 World Championships in Jakarta. For hosts Mubarak Simmons and Taqiy Simmons, this conversation is personal. Both trained under Kevin at Houston Gymnastics Academy from 1999 to 2004. This is the interview they have been waiting 20 years to have. WHAT WE COVER: - How Brody Malone and Donnell Whittenburg won World Championship gold at EVO Gymnastics - The strategy behind Brody's high bar final and the Winkler decision - Coaching Team USA three weeks after September 11, 2001 - What made the 2004 Athens team the best in a generation - Why Kevin's first coaches meetings at EVO had zero gymnastics talk - The "Surrender to Win" philosophy and how it applies to athletes and coaches - Kevin's bold prediction for Team USA at LA 2028 ABOUT KEVIN MAZEIKA: - USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame, Class of 2010 - Three-time U.S. Olympic Men's Team Head Coach (2004, 2008, 2012) - 2004 Athens: Team Silver — first non-boycotted Olympic medal since 1932 - 2008 Beijing: Team Bronze - Head coach at four World Championships (2001, 2003, 2007, 2011) - Executive Director, EVO Gymnastics — Sarasota, Florida   FOLLOW GYMNASTICSVILLE: Website: https://gymnasticsville.com Instagram: https://instagram.com/gymnasticsville Newsletter: https://gymnasticsville.com