Thema Williams is an international elite gymnast from Trinidad and Tobago who came to the USA in 2013 to train at Twistars with distinguished coach John Geddert. In 2011, Williams made history by becoming the first female gymnast to represent Trinidad and Tobago at a World Championships, and now she is looking to be the first to represent her country at the Olympics.

Williams competed in Glasgow and had a very strong performance, scoring a 52.46 in the all-around—good for 59th place out of all the qualifications competitors. Trinidad and Tobago earned one individual all-around spot for the Rio Test Event, which will be held April 16-19 in Rio de Janeiro. Williams will be looking to earn a berth to the Olympics at that competition. We caught up with her after Worlds to get an update on her training:



FloGymnastics: YouÂ’ve been training in Michigan with John Geddert - Can you talk about how thatÂ’s been for you?

Thema Williams: At first it was a little bit rough, especially adjusting to the climate because the winter was absolutely brutal the first time. But I think as time went on I really adjusted well and I think the program is doing really well.

Can you talk a little about your decision to come to the U.S. to train with John?

Well it started off when I went to his camp in 2013 and I decided that that is where I wanted to go to train for the Olympics.

How has your training been leading up into the competition?

Oh itÂ’s been pretty intense. John has been really getting on me with the numbers because my major problem is usually consistency. So heÂ’s really been pushing me with the numbers but I guess it worked out in the end.

Talk more about training with JohnÂ…

Training with John—as I said—it’s really really intense, but you just have to know that you can take the pressure and it’s for your goals, and you’ll do whatever it takes. Training with him is definitely really difficult but it pays off in the end.

What kinds of things has he helped you out with in particular?

Since joining his club, he definitely helped me out with my consistency because that was my major problem, and upgrades on my skills, and putting my routines together.

What specific upgrades have you made lately?

I’ve been working Yurchenko doubles on vault, switch rings on beam, on bars—toe shoot fulls and hopefully upgrading my dismount in the future.

So what are you doing outside of gymnastics—are you in school or are you taking time off of that?

I took two years off of school to train for the Olympics, so right now I’m not really doing anything. I think it was a decision that nobody ever saw coming. They expected me to just do college gymnastics, but then I told my mom—I said ‘I’m not ready for that step yet,’ and she had me make a plan and it worked out.

How did you figure out where you were going to stay in Michigan when you came?

A: So John basically just sent out an email to everybody at the gym, and said this girl from Trinidad and Tobago is coming to train for the Olympics—‘would anybody like to house her?’ And Michelle and Bob Hill—Anna Hill’s parents, she was an ex-gymnast—decided to take me in.

What would you say is your main goal going forward?

A: My main goal—I definitely want to boost my all-around score and I want t make it to Rio in 2016.

Williams recently posted this video of her lovely double layout off bars:




Related:
Thema Williams - Making History For Trinidad And Tobago At 2011 Worlds
Rio Test Event Team And Individual Qualifiers