University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Vanessa Zamarripa Profile
July 19, 2010 | Gymnastics
July 19, 2010
By Seema Choksy, uclabruins.com contributor
How did you first get involved with gymnastics?
"I believe it was after the 1996 Olympics that I watched on TV. I told myself I could do it so I started flipping around. I begged my parents for a year to put me in gymnastics and they finally did. Ever since then I've just enjoyed it so much and it's taken me so far."
What made you decide to take it to the Elite Level and what's your ultimate goal?
"I just feel like each year I keep getting better and stronger and I thought since I'm healthy and everything has been going well so far, why not give it a shot. I love competing so I want to compete as much as I can and see where it takes me. I feel like every gymnast at this level has the Olympics in the back of their head."
What are some of the differences between training for college and training for Elite?
"It's just putting in more hours, and the routines are longer. But when I do the routines, it doesn't seem that different from when I train for college because it's still about doing your routine and being consistent. I feel like there's not much of a difference."
What upgraded skills did you incorporate into your routines for the National Elite Qualifier, and are you planning on upgrading more from that for the CoverGirl Classic?
"For the qualifier I didn't have that many upgrades because I didn't have that much time from the end of season to the qualifier. Since then, I have added a little bit more. The skills are pretty much skills I have already done before, so it's not that new. The routines are a little bit longer and a little bit more complicated. So far it's not more challenging because it's all mental really; I've already done these skills before. I've competed with a double layout on the floor before so I'm probably going to put that in the routine. The vault is the same. On beam I added a couple different jumps and a slight change on my handspring layout- it's a two foot now. On bars I have two releases now instead of one, but it's the same dismount. It should be pretty good."
What did you learn from your freshman season that helped you become better last year?
"The amount of talent that I had didn't change; it was mainly my mental discipline. I have a different outlook of how I view gymnastics - I am enjoying it more, living in the moment, and having a lot of fun with it. I feel like a lot of people forget that it's just gymnastics and you should have fun doing this sport. I have a good time with it."
What do you want to improve on for next year?
"Well, this year I thought I did really well, but I can always improve. I didn't get a 40 so I could still fix those little imperfections on each event; just improve the slightest things that the judges take deductions on like a toe point. I haven't reached a 10 on all of the events, so I want to keep improving and getting better."
What's it like competing for Coach Val and UCLA?
"I just feel so honored, especially having such wonderful coaches and Coach Val as a role model to me. I also had the chance to meet Coach Wooden. He's a big inspiration as well, and if I had gone anywhere else I wouldn't have gotten to meet him. I have his pyramid of success, and I just need to be like him."
Are there any athletes that you look up to?
"Well there are a couple Olympians who are Bruins. Kristen Maloney is a big inspiration to me, and I've actually gotten to talk to her. She's so strong mentally. She didn't train all that much because she was injured, but when she did, it was just perfect all the time."
What are some of your hobbies outside of gymnastics?
"I like to get involved in other sports. If I have time I'll go to the gym at the Wooden Center to use Collins Court and just shoot the basketball around. I like to play beach volleyball with my teammates. Recently I started playing the piano again because I played a long time ago and thought I would get back into it but I just didn't have that much time."
What are your plans after gymnastics?
"I think I want to go to graduate school or maybe do some broadcasting - that would be really awesome."
