At age 51, Algonquin woman will represent U.S. in international gymnastics meet

Algonquin resident Alison Wright quit gymnastics when she was 19, after training since she was 3 years old. She was going to compete in college, but “retired” right before the season started.

“That was one of the biggest regrets I have,” she said. “I think I was nervous or I didn’t feel like I was prepared for it.”

Now 32 years later, at the age of 51, Wright will be competing in Einbeck, Germany, on Oct. 6 for the Gymnastics Masters Team World Cup. The competition will have teams from the U.S., Germany, Great Britain and Japan, with competitors aged 30 to 70 and up.

Wright will be competing for Team USA in the beam, which she said is one of her favorite events.

“This is sort of my Olympics,” she said.

Wright competes as an adult gymnast in the Amateur Athletic Union. She recently brought home a gold, two silver and two bronze medals at the AAU Gymnastics National Championship in Florida this summer.

“I would have never thought that I would be a gymnast at the age of 3 and then I’m a gymnast at the age of 51,” she said.

Wright only started training again in gymnastics two years ago. She came across an article that covered adult gymnastics and it inspired her to start again.

“There’s a whole community out there that I didn’t know about,” she said.

She was having difficulty finding a gym that had an adult program until she came across Royalty Gymnastics, Tumble and Dance in Huntley.

Owner Edmar Nicolas said Wright is the reason he started the adult program and things took off from there. He said she is like a celebrity at the gym.

“I have my gymnasts look up to her,” Nicolas said. “If she can still do it, so can anyone.”

Training later in life does come with its challenges. Wright tore all the ligaments in both of her ankles in 2022 during a tumbling accident.

“I spent the summer in a wheelchair. I missed Nationals. It was awful,” she said.

Despite the injury, Wright got back into the gym as soon as she could. Her ankles are still bad, and she plans on getting surgery done after the competition in Germany, she said.

“I’m going to keep going until my body says I can’t do it anymore,” she said.

To help cover the costs of competing in the Masters Team World Cup, Wright set up a GoFundMe fundraiser. Gymnasts are responsible for all the costs including travel, lodging, fees and leotards.

Regardless if people want to compete or just train, Wright hopes to inspire other adults to do what makes them happy. She is especially inspired by other adult gymnasts that are just starting out in the sport.

“Age is a number,” she said. “It shouldn’t define what you can and cannot do.”