A North Texas teen has her sights set on Paris in 2024, not as a tourist, but as a member of the U.S. Women’s Gymnastics team competing in the Olympics.
Sky Blakely, a senior at Wakeland High School in Frisco, started gymnastics at the age of 3. Her mom wanted Blakely and her older sister Sloane to have a fun activity. Fourteen years later, Blakely is still having fun, but gymnastics has also become a serious passion for the 17-year-old.
Blakely has been competing at the senior elite level since 2021, finishing in first place on the balance beam at that year’s Winter Cup. At the 2021 National Championships, she finished seventh in the all-around, earning her a spot on the national team and a chance to compete in the upcoming Olympic trials.
Unfortunately, at the Olympic trials that year, Blakely tore a ligament in her elbow during vault warmups and was forced to withdraw from both nights of competition. Although the injury was a disappointing setback, Blakely bounced back stronger than ever.
“I had a surgery last year, and I feel like that motivated me and pushed me to be even better and to come back faster and stronger, so I think I totally proved that this year,” Blakely told NBC 5.
At the 2022 Winter Cup, Blakely placed second in the all-around competition and was selected to participate in the DTB Pokal Team Challenge in Stuttgart, Germany, where her team placed first. In July, Blakely took home a bronze in the all-around and floor exercise. At the Pan American Championships, Blakely and her teammates won a silver medal in the team competition.
Most recently, Blakely helped the U.S. win its sixth consecutive team gold medal at the 2022 World Championships in October.
Amid all the traveling for competition, Blakely is winding up her last year of high school and has verbally committed to compete for the Florida Gators during her college years, where her sister Sloane also competes. However, college life will have to wait, as Blakely intends to take a year following graduation to focus intensely on the Olympic qualifiers.
Blakely trains six days a week at the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy (WOGA) in Frisco under coach Yevgeny Marchenko, who, along with fellow Olympian Valeri Liukin, cofounded the gymnastics academy.
WOGA gymnasts have won 36 World and Olympic medals, and the academy has trained such notables as 2004 Olympic Champion Carly Patterson, 2008 Olympic Champion Nastia Liukin, and 2016 Olympic Champion Madison Kocian.
How does Blakely feel about putting in the work to earn an Olympic medal?
“I want it so bad. I work every day getting the small goals first, and every step is towards that, so I really want to be there and be on that Olympic stage, and that’s just my biggest dream,” said Blakely.
