Finding The Right Fit: Maggie Dunn
Choosing her gymnastics path, training with an Olympian and finally finding her home.

 

Many young gymnasts dream of getting the opportunity to compete at the elite level, and for Maggie Dunn of Attleboro, Massachusetts, that dream was in her grasp.  However, after getting a taste of the elite scene, Maggie decided that her heart was set on becoming a collegiate gymnast and is pursuing that dream with Carey Fagan and the Ohio State Buckeyes.

A Promising Future for a Young Athlete

Maggie Dunn progressed very quickly as a young gymnast, with natural talent and an experienced coaching staff behind her the possibilities were endless. She trained at Aim High Academy then Brestyan’s Gymnastics for many years and moved to Ace Gymnastics her senior year of high school.

Dunn became a Level 10 when she was only 10 years old and competed in her first elite meet at the age of 12 while training at Aim High Academy in Rhode Island under head coach Ricky Harris.

“It was a very good experience to be on that scene with all the elite gymnasts and it was cool to be at the Ranch and see that different kind of meet,” Dunn said.

Dunn remembers being star struck, but extremely nervous at the same time.  Going to the Ranch and being under the watchful eye of Marta Karolyi was overwhelming. She recalls the training camp being “much more intense than JO” but learning a great deal in such a short amount of time.

Dunn became used to the intense training though, back at Brestyan’s she says that training in the elite group came with a lot of numbers. 10 beam routines, 10 vaults, 2 floor routines and 5 bar routines a day.

The numbers were grueling, but helped Dunn become a six time JO National Qualifier as well as the 2009 JO National Beam Champion. Dunn only missed qualifying to nationals one year during her career.

Going into a Level 10 JO Regional seven times, one may think that it would get less stressful each time, however that was not the case.

“I wish I could say it did (get less stressful), but everyone knows in the back of their mind that anything could happen that day, and that’s the time you have to be on,” said Dunn.

Regionals may have been a stressor for her, but Dunn said JO Nationals was not that way.

“For me, nationals were more of a time to just show what you can do. There is nothing after it, there is nothing more to prove,” Dunn said.

 

Training with a Future Olympic Champion

During Dunn’s training at Brestyan’s she was fortunate enough to train with some big name athletes including Canadian National Team Member Talia Chiarelli, April Baker, 2008 Olympian Alicia Sacramone for a short time and most notably, 2012 Olympic Team and Floor Champion Aly Raisman.

“Training with Aly was a special experience. Her drive- I’ve never seen anything like it. If someone tells her she can’t do something, she will train ten times harder to prove them wrong,” Dunn said. “Having that to look up to I think has helped me in my gymnastics career as well.”

Although Dunn had moved on to Ace Gymnastics prior to the 2012 Summer Olympics, she said she was still emotional watching her old teammate and great friends live out her dreams.

“I was really proud of her just knowing how hard she worked for it and her dreams had all finally come true,” Dunn said. “I got chills every time I watched her.”

Dunn said she even cried while watching Raisman’s performances.

She describes Aly as one of her best friends and still to this day keeps in touch with her.  Dunn says Aly is the same goofy, silly girl that she was before becoming a well-known celebrity and could not be happier for her.  

(Click here to hear more about Maggie's experiences with Aly) 

Becoming a Buckeye

Dunn committed to do gymnastics at The Ohio State University her junior year of high school after taking just one unofficial visit to the campus.

“Everyone always said ‘you’ll know right away’ and I always said ‘you can’t’, but I really did know right away. I came to watch practice, and I just fell in love with the coaches right away.  They were a little different than my club coaches but I knew it was something I wanted to experience,” said Dunn.

Columbus, Ohio is about an 11-hour drive from Dunn’s home in Massachusetts and she was nervous about the big transition since she is so close with her family.  Dunn was about to enter a university with more than 50,000 students and she had come from a small town and a small private school. Dunn had also just made a different type of move the previous year when she moved from Brestyan’s Gymnastics to Ace Gymnastics.

However, both times Dunn said she was made to feel right at home immediately. Her coaches and teammates from Ace Gymnastics and Ohio State were welcoming and supportive upon her arrival.

After being on campus, she surprised herself at well she adapted to the change.

“I thought I was going to have the hardest time, but as soon as I came here, I felt comfortable and at home,” said Dunn.

The training has also been different for Dunn. The training is less intense, she says, much quicker workouts focusing more on quality versus quantity, but just as productive.

“I always feel like I’m in a different world when I’m here. It’s something I have to get used to with morning lift and sometimes double sessions, but I am transition well,” Dunn said.

Dunn also says that having more of a team aspect has made it easier to make it through the rough days and challenges of the sport.

“I’ve never felt more apart of something before coming here. Having my teammates to fall back on now to help me push through things makes it easier to push through things than club,” said Dunn. “I could not be happier with my decision.”

Click here to watch parts of the interview with Maggie!