Adaline “Adi” Bebo is a 2019 graduate of Baylor University and a reigning world champion baton twirler. She is also a Dallas-based entrepreneur, public speaker, writer, social media influencer, and ambassador for multiple charitable organizations.
Bebo won the gold medal in the strut competition at the 2018 World Federation of National Baton Twirling Associations (WFNBTA) championships.
She credits years of hard work and dedication for reaching the highest baton twirling levels.
“About my sophomore year in high school, I would do 4 a.m. practices. And, I did that all the way through college, so I could get in my training before classes,” Bebo told CBS DFW.
Bebo began twirling at nine years old and soon realized it could take her far. Part of her college education was paid by a twirling scholarship, allowing her to graduate from Baylor with a degree in neuroscience.
“Almost any school in the south… major universities… offer at least some form of scholarship to be a baton twirler, even if it’s just a costume allowance,” she said. “That goes all the way up to a full-ride. So, being aware of these scholarships, and knowing that you have that opportunity to look forward to… makes it often times completely worthwhile,” Bebo said.
Bebo has also competed for titles outside of baton twirling. She is a 4-time title holder in the Miss America and Miss USA Organizations and was Miss Park Cities 2018 and Miss Dallas 2019, and she placed in the top 5 twice for Miss Texas, including first runner-up.
Bebo is no longer an active competitor in the twirling world but hosts a clinic teaching the sport to children as young as six. She admits that many young twirlers struggle with people saying their art is not a sport.
“It’s not just a sport; it’s a multi-sport,” says Bebo. “When you actually see the freestyle baton twirling that we do, it incorporates multi-element tricks while doing gymnastics, dance and performance seamlessly to a piece of music, much like figure skating or rhythmic gymnastics.”
Bebo is enjoying passing the baton to the next generation of young twirlers.
“It shouldn’t be a goal informed by their parents or their coaches,” she said. “It should be a goal informed by their own heart.”
“Whether it’s to perform at a high school… at a state level… or at a college. Whether it’s to be a world champion, or on Team USA. Even if it’s to perform at a local parade, or twirl for themselves. It’s important to acknowledge that every single one of those goals is completely valid and worth pursuing,” Bebo said.
