Twin City Twisters
| Full name | Twin City Twisters Gymnastics |
|---|---|
| Nicknames | TCT |
| Sport | Artistic gymnastics |
| Founded | 1987; 27 years ago |
| League | USA Gymnastics |
| Based in | Champlin, Minnesota |
| Owner | Mike Hunger |
| Head coach | Sami Wozney |
| Members | Maggie Nichols Grace McCallum Jessie DeZiel Olivia Trautman Abby Paulson |
| Website | twincitytwisters |
Twin City Twisters, commonly shortened to TCT, is an artistic gymnastics facility located in Champlin, Minnesota. A number of elite and collegiate gymnasts have trained there, including World champions Maggie Nichols and Lexi Zeiss, Olympic medalist Grace McCallum, and Pan American Games champion Jessie Deziel.
History
[edit]Mike Hunger opened the facility in 1987.[1]
The program was involved in the USA Gymnastics sex abuse scandal as Maggie Nichols and coach Sarah Jantzi were among the first to speak out about Larry Nassar.[2][3]
In 2024, the organization hired Tom Farden, the former head coach of Utah Red Rocks, who left Utah after abuse allegations surfaced around the program.[4][5]
Coaching staff
[edit]- Mike Hunger - Former owner and head coach[6]
- Sami Wozney
- Sarah Jantzi - Head elite coach[7]
- Rich Stenger - Minnesota Golden Gophers assistant coach, former Roseville High School assistant coach [8]
Notable alumni
[edit]The following gymnasts are TCT alumni:
- U.S. National Team (2011)
- 2011 Pan American Games team champion
- Nebraska Cornhuskers (2012-2015)
- 2020 Olympic team silver medalist
- U.S. National Team (2018–22)
- 2018 World team champion
- 2019 World team champion
- Utah Gymnastics (2022-2025)
- U.S. National Team (2013–2016)
- 2015 World team champion, floor exercise bronze medalist
- Oklahoma Sooners (2017-2020) - 7x NCAA Champion
- U.S. National Team (2022–present)
- 2022 World team champion (alternate)
Abby Paulson[1]
- U.S National Team (2017)
- 2017 City of Jesolo floor champion, all-around bronze medalist
- Utah Gymnastics (2020-2024)
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Mike Hunger". Utah Utes. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
- ^ Frederick, Jace (July 17, 2018). "Minnesota native gymnast who was first to speak up about Nasser sex abuse to be honored". inforum.com. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
- ^ Frederick, Jace (July 19, 2018). "Maggie Nichols' courage — going public about Nassar's sex abuse — helped transform gymnastics". St. Paul Pioneer Press. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
- ^ Vejar, Alex (November 21, 2023). "Utah gymnastics coach Tom Farden is out as Red Rocks boss after months of controversy". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
- ^ Sikdar, Disita (July 4, 2024). "After MyKayla Skinner, Former Coach Gets Brutally Slammed By Gymnastics Community For Getting Into Twin City Twisters: "This Sport is So Toxic"". essentiallysports.com. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
- ^ Furlong, Josh (May 9, 2024). "Carly Dockendorf adds former club coach Mike Hunger as newest Red Rocks assistant". KSL. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
- ^ a b Karwowski, Alex (April 5, 2024). "Aspiring U.S. Olympics team gymnast Lexi Zeiss training in Champlin". The Star Tribune. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
- ^ "Rich Stenger Bio - University of Minnesota Official Athletic Site". www.gophersports.com. Archived from the original on 2015-03-16.
- ^ "Jessie DeZiel". Nebraska Cornhuskers. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
- ^ "Olympian Grace McCallum Inspires Gymnasts at Twin City Twisters". CCX Media. August 4, 2021. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
- ^ Clayton, Ren (January 21, 2024). "Former Minnesota gymnast Maggie Nichols hopes new book will help sexual abuse survivors". CBS News. Retrieved June 10, 2024.