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Diane Ellingson Smith
Full nameDiane Ellingson Smith
Former countries represented United States
Born(1959-05-27)May 27, 1959
Salt Lake City, Utah
DiedJuly 12, 2019(2019-07-12) (aged 60)
College teamUniversity of Utah
Former coach(es)

Diane Ellingson Smith (27 May 1959 – 12 July 2019) was an American gymnast, teacher, and inspirational speaker.

Biography

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Diane Ellingson Smith was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah, and had six siblings.[1]

At fourteen years old, Ellingson Smith traded cleaning for gymnastics lessons.[1] She competed with the Utah Academy of Gymnastics during high school with coaches Paul Hunt and Michelle Pond, and then competed on the Utah Red Rocks gymnastics team with coach Greg Marsden at the University of Utah.[2] She won the Junior Olympic All-Around Championship,[3] Region 1 Senior Division Championship,[4] and placed second in nationals on the bars.[5] She was a three-time All-American champion on the uneven parallel bars and finished second in the National Championships in 1981.[6] She led her University of Utah teammates to their first national AIAW championship in 1981.[7][1]

In 1981, at age 22, she joined the first U.S. Professional Gymnastics Classic.[8] On the first day of the tour, she over-rotated while landing a vaulting horse move and landed on her neck, sustaining an injury that left her paralyzed from the chest down.[6]

After the accident, Ellingson Smith completed her degree in childhood education at the University of Utah and became an elementary school teacher and inspirational speaker.[8] A book, Don’t You Dare Give Up, was published about her in 1991.[9]

That same year, she married Scott Smith and became the stepmother to four children.[10] She was a torchbearer for the 1996 Olympic Games and the 2002 Winter Olympic Games.[11][12] Ellingson Smith died on 12 July 2019, aged 60, from undisclosed causes.

Legacy

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The Diane Ellingson Award, an award given to the most inspirational University of Utah gymnast, is named after her.[13]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Kasl Phair, Kendra. "A Champion Again". The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  2. ^ "Gymnast to attend U". Digitized by J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah. Utah Daily Chronicle. 21 July 1977. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  3. ^ Rooney, Joe (September–October 1977). "Girls' Competition, '77". United States Gymnastics Federation's Gymnastics News. VI (5): 8. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  4. ^ "Women gymnasts' experiences reveal talent". Utah Daily Chronicle. Vol. 87, no. 74. Digitized by J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah. University of Utah Student Media, Salt Lake City, Utah. 12 January 1978. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  5. ^ Kilkenny, Kelly (7 October 1981). "Gymnasts to strive for new title". Utah Daily Chronicle. Vol. 91, no. 22. Digitized by J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah. University of Utah Student Media, Salt Lake City, Utah. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  6. ^ a b "Crimson Club Hall of Fame Inducts Four April 21". University of Utah Athletics. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  7. ^ Hamilton, Linda (24 March 1995). "UTAH GYM PROGRAM TO CELEBRATE 20 YEARS WITH REUNION SATURDAY". Deseret News Publishing Company. Deseret News. Archived from the original on October 1, 2018. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  8. ^ a b Klossner Hulet, Renon (6 September 1989). "Ex-Gymnast Still Soaring: Accident Victim Conquers New World in a Wheelchair". Deseret News Publishing Company. Deseret News. Archived from the original on July 14, 2019. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  9. ^ Klossner Hulet, Renon (1991). Don't you dare give up. Salt Lake City, Utah: Desert Book. ISBN 0875795315. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  10. ^ Robinson, Doug (26 July 1998). "Ellingson feels what gymnast is feeling". Deseret News Publishing Company. Deseret News. Archived from the original on April 22, 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  11. ^ "For Starters — This Utahn Is No Quitter". NewsBank. The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  12. ^ "Utah torchbearers". Deseret News. Deseret News Publishing Company. Archived from the original on September 10, 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  13. ^ "Utah Gymnastics" (PDF). CBS Sports. CBS Sports Digital. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
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