April 19, 2004

Athlete Focus: Sarah Shire Shines

By Luan Peszek
USA Gymnastics

Sarah Shire got her start in the sport of gymnastics when she was 3. She said, "During preschool there was a bus with carpeting and equipment inside and I started taking classes. The coach thought I had potential and recommended that I start a gymnastics class."

It's a good thing the gymnastics bus instructor noticed her talent! At age 16 she has burst onto the international gymnastics scene. Most recently she competed in the Cottbus Cup in Germany and won the silver medal on vault and took fourth on beam and fifth on bars.

"It was amazing competing with all those great gymnasts from all the countries," said Sarah. "The set up is like World Championships so it was great experience for me. It was a challenging competition for me but hopefully it will help me in the future."

Sarah competed a Yurchenko double twist for her first vault and a Yurchenko ½ on pike ½ for her second vault. "Winning the silver medal was incredible," she said. Just going and making finals was great. All the hard work had paid off."

Vault is her favorite event. When asked why, Sarah said, "I love the speed and power of it. It's the easiest event for me." As for her least favorite event, "I don't really have one. We work hard on all four events."

While in Germany at the Cottbus Cup the U.S. delegation was able to visit Berlin and the Berlin Wall and toured around the city. "It was cool," said Sarah.

The Cottbus Cup was Sarah's second international trip. The first was in 2002 when she traveled to The Netherlands for the deHypotheekshop Gymnastics Top where she won the bronze medal on floor and was fifth on vault and beam.

Sarah is coached by Al Fong and his wife Armine Barutyan Fong. Al said, "Sarah's enthusiasm is what sets her apart from others. She's very talented and always gives 100%. She's quick and that helps with the skills she's doing plus she makes corrections very easily. She has a passion for the sport and has big goals. When you have a gymnast like that it sure makes it easier. She's pulling us versus us pushing her."

Sarah came to Great American Gymnastics Express about 3 years ago (2001) and that's when she went elite. Sarah and her teammates from Great American Gymnastics Express in Blue Springs, Mo., train 32-40 hours per week, depending on the time of year and what meet is coming up. According to Fong, "We'll train around 35 hours per week as we get a little closer to the Trials. Fong continued, "I have 3 viable candidates for the Olympic Team (Shire, Courtney McCool and Terin Humphrey)."

When asked what makes the three of them so successful, Sarah said, "All three of us in the gym together pushing each other is great. We support each other and we're all really supportive of one another.

Sarah is a 10th grader at Arch Bishop O'Hara High School. Her school works with her to accommodate her training schedule. "She's a straight A student," said Fong.

"I love school," said Sarah. "It's completely different from gym and I keep it separate. I have friends at school and friends at gym. My teachers are really supportive with my traveling. My teachers give me homework before I leave and give me time to get caught up when I return. I go into school early a lot to make up work or tests or whatever."

Sarah likes to spend time with her parents and get caught up on homework when she's not in the gym. "Courtney and I also like to shop together," said Sarah. "When we have time off it's kind of a rest time so that we can do well when we're in the gym.

As for the future, Sarah's goal in gymnastics is to be in medal contention this year at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships. She said, "I was a little rocky last year (finished 15th all-around). I think my consistency is coming around. Plus my start values are higher."

Sarah would like to do gymnastics in college but hasn't decided where she'll go. "I'm keeping my options open. I definitely want to do college gymnastics. I want to take my visits and see how the team and coaches work."

Looks like Sarah is one to watch in 2004!