Urbandale Gymnastics Prodigy Gets Boost from Olympic Gold Medalist Gabby Douglas

An Urbandale teenager is getting some guidance handling the pressure of elite gymnastics competition from someone who knows what it’s like to become an overnight sensation – Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas.

Rachel Gowey, 15, qualified for the U.S. Classic next month in Chicago last weekend at her first-ever elite competition in Allentown, PA, the Des Moines Register reported.

The young gymnast battled nerves before her performance and was “a little bit disappointed” with her performance, Coach Liang Chow said, adding mistakes are common at first-time performances at  elite meets.

“She was a little nervous, which is normal,” Chow told the newspaper. “ Now we just need better quality, better consistency.”

Chow has asked Douglas, who won gold medals in the all-around competition and as part of the U.S. Women’s Gymnastics at the London 2012 Olympics, to help calm younger students’ nerves. She recently returned to Chow’s gym in West Des Moines to renew training for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Last weekend, Gowey fell shy of the overall score of 53 needed to qualify for the U.S. national championships, but Chow thinks that’s in her range.

Gowey’s scores Saturday were:

Uneven bars: 12.15

Balance beam: 14.2

Vault: 13.3

Floor: 11.9

Gowey must make it through two more qualifying events one in two weeks at the National team training center in texas the U.S. Classic in Chicago on July 27.

Chow has high hopes for the Johnston freshman. She qualified for the junior nationals competition last year in Virginia, winning on the balance beam and finishing second in the all-around. The long-term goal is for Gowey to be part of the U.S. squad at the 2016 Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

“She has a chance for Rio,” Chow said earlier this year. “She’s a great all-arounder.”

________

VIDEO: Rachel Gowey turned in her best performance in her elite performance debut on the balance beam, shown here in a YouTube video.