By: Megan Roche

For twelve year old Anna Tava, heading to Indianapolis in late May was a huge accomplishment. The gymnast qualified to compete at the GK Hopes Championship and concluded that it was a dream come true.

“It’s the biggest meet I’ve ever competed in,” Tava said. 

A gymnast who commutes over an hour every day to train at US Gymnastics Development Center in Mahwah, Tava is dedicated to her sport. Tava, who competes in the all around, has personal bests that include placing third on the uneven bars at the 2021 Hopes Classic competition that was televised. Tava’s favorite event to compete is the uneven bars, much to Mom’s fears.

“When she was little, I had a really hard time watching her compete. I couldn’t video tape it, but now it’s gotten a little bit easier,” Meghan, Anna’s mom shared. “I know how much she practices. Her beam routine is maybe a little over a minute, and I know how many hours she practices to show those skills. For her, I just want the meet to go the way she wants it to go.”

While at the championship weekend in late May, Tava scored an 11.900 on the vault, a 12.550 on the uneven bars, an 11.100 on the balance beam, and a 10.400 on the floor exercise. The event was also a first for Tava as this meet was the first time she’s ever competed on podium. 

“I finally got the opportunity to be on TV and show people all my skills that I’ve been working on. Now that I’ve actually made it, it still feels amazing,” Tava said. 

During the championship weekend, Tava was also able to watch some of the USA’s top gymnasts as they fought for a spot to qualify to the USA Gymnastics Championships, which took place during the first week in June. Many of the top gymnasts who competed will go on to contend for a spot to represent Team USA at the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games. 

“We got special seating to watch the elite gymnasts, like Simone Biles. It’s amazing to watch them, they do so many amazing skills that I really want to do one day,” Tava says. 

Speaking of elite gymnastics, Tava also recently had the chance to work alongside Tom Forster, the USA Gymnastics High Performance Director. Forster, who will ultimately choose the 2021 Olympic Team, was very impressed with Tava’s skills.

“I got to train with Tom Forster. He spent a lot of time with me and worked on two events with me. It was so cool and he corrected me on skills and his corrections actually worked. It felt like I was really in contact with Simone Biles,” Tava says. 

Tava has big dreams for her career in gymnastics. The twelve year old currently doesn’t plan to compete in college, but she’d love to qualify for the US Olympic Team in 2024 for the Paris Summer Olympic Games.

“It’s always been the dream,”