Sophomore Eva Sanchez chalks her hands with her heart racing as she prepares for her routine at a gymnastics competition. The roar of the crowd along with the butterflies in her stomach fade as she takes a deep breath and launches into her routine.
From her earliest days at Winner’s Academy of Gymnastics in Chino at age 4 to winning competitions across bars, beam and vault, Sanchez has always been in love with gymnastics. Yet now, with her focus shifting toward academics, she finds herself navigating a pivotal transition. In the Sanchez household, gymnastics was deeply ingrained in their culture. With her mom a gymnastics coach and older sister a Walnut alumnus from the class of 2018 who has also participated in competitive gymnastics, support for each other was commonplace in the Sanchez household.
“My mom was a gymnastics coach, so all my earliest memories of gymnastics were with her in a gym.” Sanchez said. “I’ve been surrounded by gymnastics my whole life. It’s been my main focus for as long as I can remember.”
The Sanchez family is no stranger to competition. Along with competitive gymnastics, she’s also on the varsity track team. Her dedication to gymnastics paid off with numerous tournament victories and opportunities to travel for competitions in Florida, Utah and throughout California. These trips often spanned from three to four days, as she had to stay for her own competition as well as her teammates’. Her team was composed of members from Winner’s Academy of Gymnastics. For Sanchez, these trips weren’t just about winning but also about teammate bonding and exploring her new surroundings in her freetime.
“There’s a unique aspect to traveling for competitions,” Sanchez said. “It’s not like a holiday trip; there’s this special feeling that you know you’re there to compete, even though the jitters can be nerve-wracking. Those jitters are definitely the things that I remember vividly. Other than that, I love traveling whether it’s for competition or holiday.”
As Sanchez now steps back from competitive gymnastics for school with a focus on math and a career in the medical field, Sanchez has ventured to new hobbies such as baking. She has also expressed interest in possibly joining the cheer or stunt team, following in the steps of her older sister.
“I looked up to my older sister and, in a way, tried to follow in her footsteps,” Sanchez said. “My parents nudged me away from the path of cheerleading to focus on competitive gymnastics, but now that I’m stepping away, my curiosity towards trying out for the cheerleading team or Stunt Team has grown.”
Sanchez’s parents continue to support her journey as she changes the scope of her future. She carries the same resilience and determination that was instilled through her years of training. Though competitions may be fewer now, the lessons she learned in the gym remain guidance in her life.
Despite her deep love for gymnastics, the sport has not been without its challenges. Training up to 35 hours a week pushed her to the brink of burnout. Reflecting on those formative years, Sanchez acknowledged the mental toll of an intense schedule.
“There are a lot of coaches who can make you not like the sport when you’re younger,” Sanchez said. “But you keep pushing through. At the end of the road, just remember what you’re working for and that all your hard work was for something greater. I do wish that I could experience the thrill of competition again, but I know that I must move forward to new things. Looking back, I had a love-hate relationship with gymnastics,” Sanchez said. “Reminiscing on those nerves that I always hated, and in a way, I miss it.”
