Flipping through Rebecca Jones’ gymnastics career

“My mom got me to take gymnastics. She thought it would be good for me since I had so much energy.”

That was the beginning of senior Rebecca Jones’ journey of gymnastics and later, injuries.

Jones was five years old when she stepped foot in Blue Ridge Gymnastics Center. By age seven, she was competing with much success.

In her first competition, she placed first on floor and beam, second on vault and bars, and first all around.

Since that day, she has been in nearly one hundred competitions and has placed in every one. She takes the most pride in her placing of third at Flip Fest.

As with every athlete, Jones still faced obstacles and mistakes along the way.

“During different meets, I fell off of the beam and vault. I fell while doing my floor routine and I hit my feet on the bars at a bigger competition,” she said.

That is not where her story ends, however. In sixth grade, Jones was performing a backhand spring on a balance beam. During this, she fractured and dislocated her pinky finger, which led to surgery. This was the first of her many injuries.

“I’ve had a total of six injuries; two were very bad and ultimately ended my ability to do gymnastics,” Jones said.

She has broken her left wrist, jammed her fingers, and has pulled ligaments in her right ankle.

Jones also has Plica, a condition in which the extension of the protective synovial capsule of the knee becomes irritated or enflamed. Therefore, she also had to have surgery on her knee.

She has two pinched nerves in her shoulder, as well.

“I had to go to rehab for all of my injuries, but being injured made me want to get back to gymnastics and be better,” Jones said.

Unfortunately, Jones never healed and had to give up her sport. Her shoulder injury made it very difficult to return back to gymnastics. Today, she focuses mainly on school, but still works out with a personal trainer in order to keep herself in the same shape she was while in gymnastics. If she did not continue to maintain her strength, the effects on her body would be drastic.

“My shoulder was definitely the hardest injury to overcome. I didn’t want to talk to anyone about it and it took awhile for me to get over it. Gymnastics was practically my life,” Jones said.

Jones had to go to physical therapy and get dry needling ease the pain and stimulate the muscle to heal itself. She now massages her shoulder when it starts to bother her.

“I would love to be able to do gymnastics again, but unfortunately I will never be able to due to my shoulder injury. I tried coaching for awhile, but eventually that began to hurt my shoulder too much. I will always miss gymnastics, but I am forever grateful for the experiences and the lessons the sport has taught me,” she said.