UCLA gymnasts Norah Flatley, Jordan Chiles leave nationals with top-10 finishes
Senior Norah Flatley poses on beam at a home meet. Flatley scored three straight 9.8875s in her first three routines before closing out the meet with a 9.9375 on beam at the NCAA championships Thursday. (Anika Chakrabarti/Assistant Photo editor)
By Genevieve Trimbell
April 14, 2022 6:41 p.m.
This post was updated April 17 at 8:58 p.m.
In 43 routines this season, Norah Flatley scored under 9.800 six times.
It was no different for the senior on the biggest stage in the sport Thursday as she opened with three consecutive 9.8875s before capping off the meet – and potentially her Bruin career – with a 9.9375.
“Today, it was kind of just about me and having fun and finishing off my time as a Bruin,” Flatley said. “I honestly really enjoyed it.”
While No. 12 UCLA gymnastics didn’t qualify for nationals in the second straight season, Flatley and freshman Jordan Chiles represented the Bruins at the NCAA championships in Fort Worth, Texas, on Thursday. Flatley’s 39.600 in the all-around ranked fifth among all competitors at the second session of the NCAA semifinals.
Beginning the meet on floor, Flatley led off her routine with a stuck triple full en route to a 9.8875.
Chiles began her meet with her highest-ranked event, bars, on which she is No. 18 in the nation. She posted a perfect 10 on the event at Stanford in February. While the second half of her routine was clean, Chiles came off the bars for the second time this season on her first release move, posting a 9.3375.
“I just overcompensated how much power I have when it comes to having that adrenaline,” Chiles said. “I sometimes forget how podium is because it’s been so long.”
Flatley maintained her consistency on vault, sticking her Yurchenko full for a 9.8875, her second-highest score on the apparatus this season.
The senior said taking control of her training has led to her consistency this season.
“This year, I’ve taken my training and a lot of things into my own hands,” Flatley said. “I’ve really figured out what works for me, … and I feel like, in the end, that’s really what’s been able to keep me consistent and healthy all the way to this point.”
The pair of Bruins moved to their third rotation of the meet with Flatley on bars and Chiles on floor, where they ranked No. 24 and No. 23, respectively.
Chiles began her floor routine with a full-twisting double layout, competing it for the second time this season after debuting it at a home meet March 12. The freshman successfully completed her remaining two passes for a score of 9.9250, bouncing back from the fall on bars.
“I just wanted to go out there on floor and finish it off strong knowing that I was there for only two events,” Chiles said. “I wanted to show that I was there for those two events for a reason.”
Back on bars, Flatley kept her steadiness with another 9.8875. But it was beam, her final event of the night, that gave Flatley the second-highest all-around score of her career. The senior scored higher than all six Michigan gymnasts in her rotation, sticking her dismount en route to a 9.9375.
Flatley, who had competed in the all-around one time in 2019 prior to this season, posted eight all-around scores prior to Thursday, averaging a 39.425 – the second highest for UCLA. Her 39.600 on Thursday night placed her seventh in the final all-around standings at nationals.
“My whole career has led me to this point,” Flatley said. “It’s not like I just so happened to do really well this year. … I feel like just the whole journey has prepared me for this.”
Coach Chris Waller said that watching Flatley and Chiles compete at nationals has made the Bruins motivated to return as a team next year.
“It brings so much more motivation to make sure we’re back here next year,” Waller said. “We don’t want to feel like we did this year.”
