6 Fun Facts About Jade Carey: the 1st US Woman Gymnast to Qualify For the Tokyo Olympics

Four gymnasts will qualify for the US Olympic gymnastics team ahead of the Tokyo Games, along with two more American gymnasts who act as individuals and have a chance to contend for the all-around and event finals. Jade Carey, 21, mathematically clinched one of those individual spots last year [1] through her performances at the World Cup series [2]. Though she's qualified, Carey is still set on competing at trials this month, after which the four-person team and individual berths will be announced.

According to NBC Sports, if Carey is selected for a team spot — the top two all-arounders at trials are guaranteed spots — someone else would not fill the place she previously earned. This means the US would only send five women to the Games instead of six [3].

Carey is coached by her father, Brian, at Arizona Sunrays [4]. She has earned two world silver medals on vault (2017, 2019) and another world silver medal on floor (2017). She also won team gold at the 2019 World Championships [5].

Carey spoke to POPSUGAR last fall and said of gymnastics, "I love everything about it, like flipping and flying through the air. I also love the challenge that it brings. Everything is so challenging, but nothing feels better than finally accomplishing a skill or a routine that you've never done before." Ahead, read up on some fun facts about her.

Jade Carey's Favourite Skill Is a Double-Double on Floor

When POPSUGAR spoke with Carey last year, we asked what her choice would be if she could do one skill for the rest of her life. Her answer? A double-twisting double backflip on floor. In the video shown here, she does a double-twisting double layout (a backflip in a stretched position).

Jade Carey Could Get a Triple-Double Layout Named After Her

During a training session ahead of the 2021 US Gymnastics Championships, Carey performed an incredible triple-twisting double back layout [7] — that's three twists and two flips in a laid-out position — on floor. Emily Chan, a judge with the International Gymnastics Federation [8] (FIG), told POPSUGAR the skill is the most difficult floor tumbling pass in women's gymnastics right now.

If Carey were to execute it properly at the Olympics, she would get it named after her in the women's gymnastics rulebook (aka, the Code of Points). It would likely, Chan said, be valued higher than Simone Biles's name-bearing triple-double [9].

Jade Carey Is Committed to Oregon State University

Carey has deferred Oregon State while she continues to compete on the elite national and international stage. According to the Oregon State University website, she'll be joining the OSU gymnastics team in time for the 2022 season [10].

Jade Carey Visualizes Before Her Routines

Carey told POPSUGAR last year, "Before I compete on each event, I just picture in my mind the routine that I want to do and how well I want to do it, just to kind of mentally prepare for what I want to do and know I can do."

Jade Carey and Her Teammates Have an Impressive Ab Routine

Carey also told POPSUGAR that at least once a week, she and her teammates complete an ab circuit at gymnastics practice that features about 25 different exercises done lying on the floor. Some of the exercises are hollow holds, hollow body rocks, V-ups, single-leg V-ups, straddle V-ups, and arch ups. Read how to do those moves here [11].

Vault Is Jade Carey's Favourite Event

Carey told POPSUGAR that vault is her favourite out of the four events in women's gymnastics. In fact, she has a skill named after her in the Junior Olympic Code of Points. Called, "The Carey," it is what's referred to as a "tucked Kasamatsu full [12]," and it was entered in the Code of Points after she performed it at the 2016 Junior Olympic Championships. (For any gymnastics nerds looking to read about the difference between a Kasamatsu vault and a Tsuk vault, here you go [13].)

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