Texas Dreams Gymnasts Sign National Letter of Intent

Texas Dreams gymnasts Kiya Johnson, Tori Loomis, Natalie Morton, Aspen Terrell, and Chloe Widner signed their National Letters of Intent on Wednesday.

COPPELL, TEXAS — Student-athletes in their senior year of high school participated in Signing Day across the country this week, including five Texas Dreams gymnasts who signed their National Letters of Intent to express their commitment to some of the best NCAA gymnastics programs in the country beginning in the 2019-20 season.

Kiya Johnson of Coppell, Tori Loomis of Corinth, Natalie Morton of Dallas, and Chloe Widner of Frisco have all accepted athletic scholarships to compete in women’s artistic gymnastics, while Aspen Terrell of Flower Mound, will continue her career at the collegiate level in the acrobatics and tumbling discipline.

Johnson, 16, has committed to Louisiana State University, a consistent top-five program that finished fourth at NCAA Championships in April. Johnson has been a standout in USA Gymnastics’ Junior Olympic program since she reached the highest level in 2014, and this past season, she won a total of 20 titles, including the and all-around title at J.O. National Championships in Cincinnati, Ohio. As one of the top recruits in the country, Johnson is expected to be an immediate contributor to the storied LSU team, and will round out an already solid roster with her clean, confident gymnastics.

Loomis, 17, has committed to Utah State University. The program ranked 37thin the 2018 season, and has a history of qualifying gymnasts to regional championships. As a level 10 gymnast since 2015, Loomis has qualified to J.O. nationals three times, finishing 16thon bars and beam this year, and she was the 2015 Texas state beam champion, an event where she’ll be counted on to add big scores and consistency in college.

Morton, 18, has committed to the University of Denver, one of the fastest-rising programs in the nation that finished the 2018 season ranked 15thin the country. Morton, originally from Georgia, has competed level 10 gymnastics since 2014, and she qualified to national championships in 2016 and 2017, finishing fourth on floor and sixth in the all-around in 2016 after also winning state and regional titles that season.

Widner, 17, has committed to Stanford University, one of the top academic programs in the country in addition to also being well-known for gymnastics. A level 10 gymnast since 2015, Widner has qualified to J.O. nationals every year of her career, and is the 2017 national champion on floor, also finishing second on vault and in the all-around last year while finishing third on vault in 2018. This season, she won a total of 21 titles, including the state and regional all-around titles, and she also picked up the floor title at the prestigious Nastia Liukin Cup in Chicago.

Terrell, 18, spent her club career as an artistic gymnast, but at the collegiate level, she’ll shift her talents to tumbling at Belmont Abbey College. The acrobatics and tumbling program at Belmont Abbey is currently in its inaugural season, and Terrell – a two-time level 10 regionals qualifier who finished 14thon floor this year – will be instrumental in helping build the program when she joins next season.

These five gymnasts will join thirty of Texas Dreams alumni who have competed in NCAA gymnastics, including several who are part of top teams across the country this season.

About Texas Dreams Gymnastics

Texas Dreams Gymnastics has a long history of training the nation’s most talented gymnasts. Owners Kim Zmeskal-Burdette and Chris Burdette and their staff operate from an enormous 36,000 square-foot arena. Zmeskal-Burdette is the USA’s first world champion gymnast and is also an Olympic medalist and International Hall of Fame member.

Texas Dreams is renowned for innovative and inspired coaching and training in all gymnastics trends and techniques. The gym has a record of developing talented athletes at every age level and has a history of placing elite gymnasts on the U.S. national team every year. For more information about Texas Dreams, please visitwww.texasdreams.comor call 972.471.2345.

Texas Dreams Gymnasts Top the Podium in Italy

Texas Dreams gymnasts Emma Malabuyo and Ragan Smith dominated the competition at the City of Jesolo Trophy in April, taking home six medals, including the all-around gold and silver.

JESOLO, ITALY — In her senior debut at the City of Jesolo Trophy competition in Jesolo, Italy, Emma Malabuyo of Flower Mound won the coveted all-around title in a field of 37 gymnasts from some of the top international elite programs in the world.

The Texas Dreams gymnast was the youngest competitor in the senior division at just 15, but she competed like a veteran, putting up a difficult and technically strong performance to finish ahead of some of the most experienced international competitors, including world and Olympic medalists. 

This was Malabuyo’s third appearance at this competition, having previously won silver and bronze all-around medals on top of a couple of event titles as a junior competitor in 2016 and 2017. In addition to her all-around win this year, Malabuyo also topped the podium on beam and floor thanks to excellent performances on both, with her floor routine a fan favorite in front of the Italian crowd. 

Ragan Smith, the alternate for the 2016 U.S. Olympic team who trains with Malabuyo at Texas Dreams, won the silver all-around medal just seven tenths behind her teammate, returning to competition for the first time since an ankle injury forced her to withdraw from the all-around final at world championships in Montreal last year. 

Smith, 17, started out her competition looking a little shaky on floor, and she downgraded the difficulty of her vault to focus on clean execution, but her performances on bars and beam were close to her peak ability, helping her qualify to the event finals on both in addition to posting scores that helped her outscore both Russian gymnasts in the field, who placed third and fourth.

On the second day of competition, Smith earned a pair of silver medals on bars and beam, her routines showcasing some of the greatest difficulty and execution of the meet on both. 

Representing Texas Dreams, Malabuyo and Smith collectively earned the highest individual medal count at the meet with a total of six medals, ahead of international competitors as well as fellow U.S. national team members who also traveled to Italy from gyms across the country. 

Going forward, both gymnasts will focus on the domestic season in the U.S. this summer, hoping to put up a strong showing at national championships as the first step on the road to earning spots on this year’s world championships team.

About Texas Dreams Gymnastics

Texas Dreams Gymnastics has a long history of training the nation’s most talented gymnasts. Owners Kim Zmeskal-Burdette and Chris Burdette and their staff operate from an enormous 36,000 square-foot arena. Zmeskal-Burdette is the USA’s first world champion gymnast and is also an Olympic medalist and International Hall of Fame member.

Texas Dreams is renowned for innovative and inspired coaching and training in all gymnastics trends and techniques. The gym has a record of developing talented athletes at every age level and has a history of placing elite gymnasts on the U.S. national team every year. For more information about Texas Dreams, please visit www.texasdreamsgymnastics.comor call 972.471.2345. 

Texas Dreams Gymnasts Win Titles at Nastia Liukin Cup, and Texas State Championships

Kiya Johnson, Chloe Widner, and Bella Salcedo each claimed titles at the ninth annual Nastia Liukin Cup and then again at Texas State Championships the following week.

COPPELL, TEXAS — Three gymnasts from Texas Dreams in Coppell, Texas won event titles at the prestigious Nastia Liukin Cup in Hoffman Estates, Ill., before going on to win all-around and event titles at the Texas State Championships.

Kiya Johnson of Desoto and Chloe Widner of Frisco competed in the senior division at the Nastia Liukin Cup held on March 2, placing fifth and 14th, respectively, after showing solid performances in a talented field of gymnasts that earned spots at this exclusive meet after a two-month series of qualifying events throughout the country.

Johnson, 16, put up her best work on the uneven bars and floor exercise in her third Nastia Liukin Cup appearance. In addition to her strong all-around finish, Johnson also won the bars title with a 9.700 while also placing third on floor. This was the second appearance at this meet for Widner, 17, who also had two top-five finishes, putting up a powerful and tidy vault to place fifth there before winning the title on floor, edging out Johnson by just half a tenth for the gold.

In the junior division, 15-year-old Bella Salcedo of Grand Prairie placed seventh all-around, also showing a clean vault to grab the title with a score of 9.800, but her floor was what made people take notice, with her elegant dance and beautiful choreography helping her to a fourth-place finish just half a tenth back from the top spot.

This year’s Nastia Liukin Cup was the ninth in the competition’s history, and the alumni have gone on to become some of the best gymnasts in the world. Three-time Olympic champion Gabrielle Douglas placed fourth all-around in her appearance at the first Nastia Liukin Cup in 2010, and the seven other gymnasts from Texas Dreams who have competed here over the years have gone on to earn collegiate scholarships at Division I NCAA programs.

A total of 36 gymnasts represented Texas Dreams Gymnastics at this year’s State Championships, hosted by Texas Dreams on March 17-18 for gymnasts competing in levels nine and ten, the two highest levels in USA Gymnastics’ Junior Olympics program. Texas Dreams gymnasts collected a total of 18 state titles and qualified 34 gymnast to Regional Championships, more than any other gym among the seven states that comprise Region 3.

Widner won the all-around title in the level 10 Senior B2 division with a 39.025, the highest score among all 361 competitors across all divisions and levels. She also scored a “perfect 10” for her flawlessly executed vault to win that title on top of the event titles on beam and floor, nearly sweeping the competition with her second-place finish on bars the lowest finish for her at this meet.

Johnson also dominated in her division, Senior A1, winning the all-around, vault, and bars titles in addition to placing second on beam and floor, while Salcedo placed second all-around in the Junior C2 division, winning the vault title while placing third on bars, beam, and floor. Also winning titles in level 10 were Colbi Flory on beam, Caroline Herry on floor, Taylor Ingle on bars, Madison Raesly on beam and floor, Lyric Walker in the all-around and on beam. 

Other level 10 competitors for Texas Dreams included Londyn Daniel, Addison Davis, Claire Feick, Sude Item, Momoko Iwai, Victoria Loomis, Gabrielle McLaughlin, Lindsey Moffitt, April Nava, Aspen Terrell, Avery Walters, Kaylee Wilson, and Riley Wilson.

Cecily Rizo posted the top level 9 all-around score for Texas Dreams, earning a 37.650 to place fifth in the tough Junior B1 division. Rizo also placed second on vault and fifth on bars and beam for a strong finish in her second season as a level 9 competitor, qualifying easily to Region 3 Championships.

Winning titles in their respective level 9 divisions were Kailen Smalls and Lara Burhans on vault, while Alison Ritch took home the title on beam. Smalls was a top-five finisher on all four events in addition to placing third all-around, while Burhans also placed third all-around and Ritch was second all-around and on floor.

Other level 9 competitors for Texas Dreams included Ava Andrews, Alyssa Bogdan, Amanda Croff, Caleigh Hollingsworth, Leanne Jojo, Katie Morgan, Morgan Price, Marina Queijeiro, Matis Rains, Kati Rice, and Blythe Terrell.

Going forward, the Texas Dreams gymnasts will continue the season with a focus on the Junior Olympic National Championships for level 10 competitors, to be held May 11-13 in Cincinnati, Ohio, and on the Level 9 Western Championships, to be held May 4-6 in Sandy, Utah.

About Texas Dreams Gymnastics

Texas Dreams Gymnastics has a long history of training the nation’s most talented gymnasts. Owners Kim Zmeskal-Burdette and Chris Burdette and their staff operate from an enormous 36,000 square-foot arena. Zmeskal-Burdette is the USA’s first world champion gymnast, and is also an Olympic medalist and International Hall of Fame member.

Texas Dreams is renowned for innovative and inspired coaching and training in all gymnastics trends and techniques. The gym has a record of developing talented athletes at every age level, and has a history of placing elite gymnasts on the U.S. national team every year. For more information about Texas Dreams, please visit www.texasdreams.com or call 972.471.2345.

Malabuyo wins Gold in Japan

YOKOHAMA, JAPAN — Emma Malabuyo of Flower Mound finished an unforgettable season at last weekend’s Junior Japan International, the most prestigious international competition in the world for junior elite gymnasts, where she won a medal on all five events.

The 14-year-old, who trains at Texas Dreams Gymnastics in Coppell, hit every event to take home two bronze medals, two silver medals, and the gold on floor in a deep international field that also included the top junior gymnasts from Russia, China, Romania, and Japan, as well as Malabuyo’s U.S. teammate, Maile O’Keefe of Las Vegas, Nev.

In the all-around competition, Malabuyo overcame some minor faults on the uneven bars and the balance beam to finish strong, qualifying into both event finals despite the mistakes, and she also posted the top scores of the day on vault and floor to finish second all-around with a score of 55.600, just half a point behind her teammate, O’Keefe, who took the gold.

Malabuyo and O’Keefe were the only two gymnasts to qualify into every event final, and the pair also ended up medaling in every final. Malabuyo tied for the silver on beam and won the bronze on vault and bars, showing some of her strongest performances on all three events and finishing just a tenth or two behind the gold medalist in all instances in what was an incredibly tight race.

Floor was where Malabuyo dominated, winning the gold a half point ahead of O’Keefe with a 14.066, making her undefeated this season in floor finals after also winning the titles domestically at the U.S. Classic in July and at U.S. Championships in August in addition to getting gold on the event at the City of Jesolo Trophy in Italy this April.

Despite her young age, Malabuyo’s scores on floor are among the best in the world, making her competitive with senior-level gymnasts. With an effortless balance between powerful tumbling, perfect dance elements, and clever, entertaining choreography, Malabuyo is always a crowd favorite on floor, and managed to steal the show in front of an enthusiastic crowd in Japan.

Malabuyo, who turns 15 in November, will transition to the senior level of elite competition in 2018, making the Junior Japan International her final meet as a junior. Her junior career included three national team berths and 16 international medals, and as she continues into the senior field beginning in January, she will join Texas Dreams teammate Ragan Smith, the 2016 Olympic alternate and a member of the 2017 U.S. world championships team, as one of the top gymnasts in the country.

About Texas Dreams Gymnastics

Texas Dreams Gymnastics has a long history of training the nation’s most talented gymnasts.

Owners Kim Zmeskal-Burdette and Chris Burdette and their staff operate from an enormous

36,000 square-foot arena. Zmeskal-Burdette is the USA’s first world champion gymnast, and is

also an Olympic medalist and International Hall of Fame member.

Texas Dreams is renowned for innovated and inspired coaching and training in all gymnastics

trends and techniques. The gym has a record of developing talented athletes at every age level, and has a history of placing elite gymnasts on the U.S. national team every year. For more information about Texas Dreams, please visit www.texasdreams.com or call

972.471.2345.

Smith and Malabuyo U.S. National Champions

Texas Dreams gymnast Ragan Smith of Lewisville won the U.S. national all-around gold in Anaheim this weekend, while teammate Emma Malabuyo of Flower Mound won the silver medal in the junior division.

ANAHEIM, CALIF.  — Ragan Smith of Lewisville, Texas won the national all-around, balance beam, and floor exercise titles at the P&G Championships in Anaheim last weekend.

Smith, 17, had a near-perfect competition this weekend, leading the field of 22 gymnasts by over a point after the first day of competition on Friday and then securing the gold medal with a combined score of 115.250 on Sunday, finishing over three points ahead of the silver medalist.

Smith, who trains at Texas Dreams Gymnastics in Coppell and was an alternate for the 2016 Olympic team, is the first gymnast to earn the senior national all-around title in her gym’s 16-year history. She follows in the footsteps of coach Kim Zmeskal-Burdette, the 1992 Olympic medalist who was a three-time U.S. national champion. Smith’s win comes 25 years after Zmeskal-Burdette’s last win, and the pair also won the American Cup 25 years apart, with Zmeskal-Burdette taking the crown in 1992 and Smith earning the prestigious title in March of this year.

Her individual scores in Anaheim are now the two highest all-around scores among thousands of elite-level gymnasts who have competed all over the world so far in 2017, setting the record on Friday with a 57.400 and then instantly breaking it on Sunday with a 57.850. She also posted some of the world’s top scores on her best events, beam and floor, winning the gold medals on both in addition to tying for the bronze medal on bars.

In addition to her medal haul, Smith also once again earned a spot on the eight-person senior national team, from which four gymnasts will be selected to represent the United States at world championships in Montreal this October. Though she’ll face tough competition at the selection camp in Huntsville next month, her performance in Anaheim made Smith the number one contender for the U.S. team, and she should be a frontrunner for at least three medals in Montreal.

In the junior division, Emma Malabuyo of Flower Mound won the silver all-around medal in an incredibly tight race against reigning national champion Maile O’Keefe of Las Vegas, Nevada. The two finished the first day of competition only about a tenth apart, and while a fall from Malabuyo on beam held her back from being able to challenge on day two, she still finished over a point ahead of the bronze medalist to win her first national all-around medal in addition to retaining her spot on the U.S. national team.

Malabuyo, 14, also won the gold medal on floor, the silver medal on bars, and the bronze medal on vault to finish her competition as one of the most-decorated juniors in the U.S. with a total of four, and despite her young age, her all-around and floor scores are among the top five in the world this year, on par with gymnasts at the senior level.

Earlier this year, Malabuyo represented the U.S. at the International Gymnix meet in Canada and at the City of Jesolo Trophy meet in Italy, helping the team to gold medals at both events in addition to winning four individual medals between the two. Going forward, she will likely head to Yokohama to compete at the Junior Japan International next month, where she’ll be a favorite for medals on every event at what will be her final competition at the junior level before becoming a senior in 2018.

Also representing Texas Dreams at P&G Championships were Deanne Soza and Abi Walker at the senior level and Annie Beard and Sydney Barros at the junior level. Soza, 15, finished 10th in the all-around while Walker, also 15, competed every event but floor, with 16th place on bars her top finish. Beard, 13, had a very strong competition to finish 10th all-around in her first national competition, also placing fifth on beam and sixth on vault and floor, while Barros, 12, finished 23rd all-around with beam her strongest event.

In addition to all of her gymnasts’ successes in Anaheim, Texas Dreams co-owner and head coach Kim Zmeskal-Burdette was also recognized at the P&G Championships, winning the Elite Coach of the Year award for her contributions to the U.S. elite program in 2017. With both Smith and Malabuyo competing as some of the best in the world as well as Texas Dreams boasting the greatest number of national-level elites among any gym in the country, Zmeskal-Burdette — who also earned the United States Olympic Committee’s Developmental Coach of the Year award in 2016 — was a no-brainer for the honor, which she received alongside Smith as Athlete of the Year.

About Texas Dreams Gymnastics

Texas Dreams Gymnastics has a long history of training the nation’s most talented gymnasts. Owners Kim Zmeskal and her staff operate from an enormous 36,000 square-foot arena. Zmeskal is the USA’s first world champion gymnast, and is also an Olympic medalist and International Hall of Fame member.

Texas Dreams is renowned for innovative and inspired coaching and training in all gymnastics trends and techniques. The gym has a reputation for developing talented athletes at every level, and has a history of placing elite gymnasts on the U.S. national team every year. For more information about Texas Dreams, please visit www.texasdreams.com or call 972.471.2345. 

6 Qualified to National Championships

Texas Dreams Confident on Road to Nationals

On Saturday, six gymnasts from Texas Dreams Gymnastics in Coppell competed at the U.S. Classic, the final stop on the road to national championships.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, ILL. — Texas Dreams Gymnastics had an impressive showing at the U.S. Classic over the weekend, hitting all routines and winning six medals along the way, the most for any gym at the event.

Chris Burdette and Kim Zmeskal Burdette coached a group of six athletes to the annual Chicagoland meet, which serves as both the final qualifying meet to U.S. national championships as well as a warm-up competition for gymnasts who have already qualified to nationals.

2016 Olympic alternate Ragan Smith of Lewisville pre-qualified to nationals as a member of last year’s Olympic team, so her focus at the competition was getting a feel for two new upgrades in her uneven bars routine, which is now one of the most difficult sets in the world.

Smith, 16, had an outstanding performance both there and on the balance beam, winning the gold medals on both events and scoring an especially high 15.350 on beam, the highest beam score in the world so far this year. Smith is planning on competing all four events at nationals, and after winning the American Cup title earlier this year, she is a favorite to win the all-around crown.

Also competing at the senior level were Abigail Walker of Carrollton and Deanne Soza of Coppell.

Walker, 15, qualified to nationals at the American Classic last month, but put up a strong showing to finish in the top ten all-around.

Soza, also 15, earned her nationals score with a beautiful performance on all four events. Originally from Utah, this was Soza’s first national-level competition with Texas Dreams. After struggling last season, she returned to competition for the first time in over a year with a level of confidence and consistency that she credited entirely to her new coaches and program.

At the junior level, Emma Malabuyo of Flower Mound won gold in the all-around with routines that showed off both her high levels of difficulty as well as her immaculate execution. 14-year-old Malabuyo, who won four medals internationally in Canada and Italy earlier this year, also picked up the gold medal on floor and the silver medal on beam and will go into nationals as a strong contender for the junior national title.

Annie Beard of Dallas and Sydney Barros of Woodstock, Ga., also competed in the junior level, with both gymnasts in their first year at the elite level.

Beard, 13, had previously qualified to nationals and so competed only on beam and floor to get some practice in on both events, winning the bronze medal on floor while also looking clean and polished on beam.

At 12, Barros is the youngest and newest member of the team with the least experience, but she also had a solid competition, placing 18th all-around to earn her nationals qualifying score with beam a standout event for her.

The Dream Team will spend the next two weeks training and preparing for nationals, where they’ll be the largest club team at the meet, and could once again earn several national team spots. In addition, Smith and Malabuyo are both frontrunners for the senior and junior national all-around titles, respectively, and going forward Smith will hope to earn a spot on the four-member world championships team while Malabuyo will aim for one of two openings at Junior Japan International, one of the most prestigious junior-level competitions in the world.

The U.S. national championships, also known as the P&G Championships, are set to begin at the Honda Center on Anaheim, Calif., on August 17.

About Texas Dreams Gymnastics

Texas Dreams Gymnastics has a long history of training the nation’s most talented gymnasts. Owners Kim Zmeskal-Burdette and Chris Burdette and their staff operate from an enormous 36,000 square-foot arena. Zmeskal-Burdette is the USA’s first world champion gymnast, and she is also an Olympic medalist and International Hall of Fame member.

Texas Dreams is renowned for innovative and inspired coaching and training in all gymnastics trends and techniques. The gym has a record of developing talented athletes at every age level, and has a history of placing elite gymnasts on the U.S. national team every year. For more information about Texas Dreams, please visit www.texasdreamsgymnastics.com or call 972-471-2345.

Kim Zmeskal Named Developmental Coach of the Year

The U.S. Olympic Committee named Kim Zmeskal-Burdette the Developmental Coach of the Year for 2016.

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. —The United States Olympic Committee announced Kim Zmeskal-Burdette as the 2016 Developmental Coach of the Year for her work leading some of the country’s top elite and Junior Olympic gymnasts to numerous national and international titles.

In the U.S. Olympic Committee’s twenty-year history of naming annual award recipients for national coaches of the year, Zmeskal-Burdette, a three-time world champion and Olympic bronze medalist, is the first gymnastics coach to be named Developmental Coach of the Year. The award is presented to either a coach at the youth club, high school, or junior level, or a coach who is directly responsible for training athletes to reach the junior and/or elite level, the latter of which applies to Zmeskal-Burdette.

In 2016, Zmeskal-Burdette most notably coached 16-year-old Ragan Smith to an alternate role on the U.S. Olympic team. Smith came to Zmeskal-Burdette’s gym, Texas Dreams, in October 2013, and within six months, she earned a spot on the U.S. national team.

Smith quickly climbed the ranks, and at the U.S. Olympic Trials last summer, she placed fifth all-around, ahead of three-time Olympic champion Gabby Douglas, and also ranked second in the country on beam, just one point behind 2016 Olympic beam silver medalist Laurie Hernandez.

With Smith’s successful transfer, several young gymnasts have followed suit, some traveling across the country to train with Zmeskal-Burdette, whose gym boasts one of the largest elite programs in the U.S.

One of these gymnasts is Emma Malabuyo, who moved to Texas Dreams from California, and like Smith, quickly grew to become one of the top gymnasts in the country. Now almost 15, Malabuyo is currently one of the top junior elite gymnasts in the country, having earned eight medals — including three golds — on the international circuit last year, marking the most international medals of any U.S. junior elite gymnast in 2016.

In addition to her success with gymnasts at the elite level, Zmeskal-Burdette also runs one of the top level 10 clubs in the country, receiving the 2016 Junior Olympic Program of the Year award from USA Gymnastics for the gym’s continued success with gymnasts at this level. Whereas elite gymnasts have the aim of competing internationally, the goal of most gymnasts who reach level 10 — the highest level in the J.O. system — is to earn a full-ride scholarship to an NCAA Division I school, something they achieve by impressing recruiters by qualifying to J.O. national championships.

Last year, Zmeskal-Burdette coached nine gymnasts to J.O. nationals, all of whom finished in the top five on at least one event, and five of whom also earned J.O. national team spots, more than any other gym in the country. Additionally, four Texas Dreams high school seniors at the J.O. level graduated in 2016, moving on to such prestigious NCAA programs as Stanford University, the University at California Berkeley, Yale University, and Bowling Green State University.

Now recognized as the top developmental coach in the U.S., Zmeskal-Burdette continues to dedicate herself to her passion of helping young gymnasts succeed at the highest levels in the sport. This spring, 11 gymnasts represented Texas Dreams at J.O. nationals, and so far, four of Zmeskal-Burdette’s elite gymnasts — including Smith and Malabuyo — have qualified to represent the club at P&G Championships in Anaheim this August, where they’ll compete to earn national team spots and international assignments.

About Texas Dreams Gymnastics

Texas Dreams Gymnastics has a long history of training the nation’s most talented gymnasts. Owners Kim Zmeskal-Burdette and Chris Burdette and their staff operate from an enormous 36,000 square-foot arena. Co-owner Kim Zmeskal-Burdette is the USA’s first world champion gymnast, and is also an Olympic medalist and International Hall of Fame member.

Texas Dreams is renowned for innovative and inspired coaching and training in all gymnastics trends and techniques. The gym has a record of developing talented athletes of every age level, and has a history of placing elite gymnasts on the U.S. national team every year. For more information about Texas Dreams, please visit www.texasdreams.com or call 972.471.2345.

Widner Named Athlete of the Year

Chloe Widner, who competes for Texas Dreams Gymnastics, was named Junior Olympic Athlete of the Year by USA Gymnastics.

IRVING, TEXAS — 16-year-old Chloe Widner was named the Junior Olympic Athlete of the Year at the annual Texas USA Gymnastics Honoree Banquet held at the Irving Convention Center last week.

Widner, who is coached by Kim Zmeskal-Burdette and Chris Burdette of Texas Dreams, has qualified to Junior Olympic national championships every year since reaching level 10 — the highest level in the J.O. system — in 2015.

After showing consistent improvement each year, Widner earned her first national title at this year’s national championships in Indianapolis, Ind., taking the gold medal for her excellent floor exercise performance. Widner also placed second all-around and on vault and fourth on the uneven bars and balance beam in her division, the strongest overall competition for any gymnast from Texas.

In addition to her success at nationals, Widner was the Region 3 all-around, bars, and beam champion this year, and won the gold medals on every event but vault at state championships. Widner was also the state and regional all-around champion in 2016, and she has been named to the J.O. national team two years in a row for her excellence in competition, the highest honor a J.O. gymnast can achieve.

A student at Lakeland Christian Academy, Widner committed to the University of Arizona for her NCAA career, receiving a full-ride scholarship from the program that ranked 26th nationally in 2017 among collegiate gymnastics teams. Widner is expected to join the Wildcats in the 2019-2020 season, and should come in as an invaluable member of the team, able to add big scores on all four events.

About Texas Dreams Gymnastics

Texas Dreams Gymnastics has a long history of training the nation’s most talented gymnasts. Owners Kim Zmeskal-Burdette and Chris Burdette and their staff operate from an enormous 36,000 square-foot arena. Zmeskal-Burdette is the USA’s first world champion gymnast, and is also an Olympic medalist and International Hall of Fame member.

Texas Dreams is renowned for innovated and inspired coaching and training in all gymnastics trends and techniques. The gym has a record of developing talented athletes at every age level, and has a history of placing elite gymnasts on the U.S. national team every year. For more information about Texas Dreams, please visit www.texasdreams.com or call 972.471.2345.

Ragan Smith named to US Olympic Team

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Ragan Smith of Lewisville, Texas was one of eight athletes named to the United States women’s gymnastics team for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio di Janeiro, Brazil.

Smith, who hit all eight of her routines between the two days of competition at the U.S. Olympic Trials in San Jose, Calif., finished fifth in the all-around and second on balance beam, where her scores of 14.9 on day one and 15.3 on day two are among the highest in the world.

Following a period of deliberation after Sunday night’s competition, national team coordinator Martha Karolyi led the selection committee in choosing the Olympic team, a decision she called the most difficult of her career thanks to Team USA’s massive depth at the moment.

Ten-time world champion Simone Biles, 2012 Olympic gold medalists Aly Raisman and Simone Biles, 2015 world bars champion Madison Kocian, and newcomer Laurie Hernandez are the five set to compete in Rio next month while Smith will serve as a reserve athlete alongside Ashton Locklear and MyKayla Skinner. Smith, who is coached by Kim Zmeskal-Burdette and Chris Burdette at Texas Dreams Gymnastics in Coppell, is the youngest member of the squad and will turn 16 during the Olympic competition in Rio.

Smith, the first gymnast from Texas Dreams to make an Olympic team, will travel to the Olympic Training Center in Huntsville, Texas next week to train alongside the team prior to departing for Rio. As a reserve athlete, she will be expected to stay in peak competition shape until the start of the Games, ready to step in at a moment’s notice in case one of the five is injured or otherwise unable to compete.

The 2016 season was Smith’s first at the senior level, and her results have consistently put her among the top in the country both at home and in international competition. In addition to her finish this weekend, Smith won silver medals on beam and floor at the City of Jesolo Trophy in Italy and the gold medal on beam at the Pacific Rim Championships in Everett, Wash.

Two weeks ago, Smith secured her spot at the Olympic Trials with an eighth-place finish at the U.S. national championships in St. Louis, where her teammates Colbi Flori and Emma Malabuyo also competed. Flori had a fantastic weekend, finishing eighth all-around in the junior division while Malabuyo withdrew to prevent injury, though was named to the junior U.S. national team based on her strong results from earlier in the season.

As a special honor while in St. Louis, USA Gymnastics named Texas Dreams as the 2016 Junior Olympic Program of the Year for the gym’s continued success as one of the best clubs in the country for gymnasts competing in the J.O. system. Texas Dreams has seen success in all levels of the J.O. program this season, including sending nine gymnasts to the J.O. national championships in May. 

Eight Medals for Ragan and Emma!

Ragan Smith of Lewisville and Emma Malabuyo of Flower Mound traveled to Italy for the City of Jesolo Trophy this weekend, adding eight special souvenirs to their suitcases for the trip home.

Both had super-consistent performances in Italy with clean work and no mistakes in a very competitive competition. In a field of 27 senior-level competitors (those born in 2000 or earlier), Ragan placed second in the all-around on Saturday, only six tenths behind 2012 Olympic all-around champion Gabby Douglas! She had big scores on all four events for a total of 59.05, contributing to the team gold medal in addition to the silver of her own. On Sunday, Ragan competed in the beam and floor finals, winning the silver medals on both. She had the highest execution score on beam for her clean work there, and the Italian crowd loved her Addams Family floor routine.

Emma competed in the junior division, which featured 25 young gymnasts born in 2001 or later from the United States, Italy, Canada, Germany, Slovenia, and Finland. She earned a silver all-around medal on Saturday, earning spots in all three event finals she hoped to qualify into. Emma picked up silver medals for her clean work on bars and her beautiful performance on floor, and then blew the competition away on beam with both the highest difficulty and the cleanest routine on beam, winning the gold medal there by a full point – a huge win in a sport where tenths and hundredths of points can decide your fate!

For both, the City of Jesolo Trophy was a very strong start to their 2016 season, especially for Ragan, who is hoping to make it to the Olympic Games in Rio this summer (Emma’s not old enough and will have to patiently wait until 2020 for her shot). After their success, the two enjoyed a day of fun in Venice, but now it’s back to Texas Dreams to train hard for the season still to come.