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PANELISTS

Emily Lee, Gymnast at UCLA

“I started gymnastics when I was 6. Tried out various gyms in the bay and settled with West Valley which was one of the best decisions I ever made. I competed my first year of level ten in 2015 when I was 13 as well as my first championships as a junior elite. Then I left the JO world to pursue elite gymnastics where I became a 3x National Team Member, won the 2020 Gymnix title, competed at 2021 Olympic Trials, and now a UCLA gymnast.”

Kristen Kuhn, Gymnast at UPenn

“I am currently a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania, where I am on the D1 gymnastics team specializing in bars and beam. I am planning on majoring in Health & Societies with a concentration in Public Health. I did my club training at Accel Gymnastics in Burlingame, CA. Throughout my entire gymnastics career, I've been faced with a variety of injuries and setbacks, including missing my senior season in JO and my freshman season in NCAA, but I am a firm believer that these obstacles have shaped me into the person I am today and my gymnastics career would absolutely not be the same had I not undergone these experiences.”

Kyana George, Gymnast at UC Berkeley

“Starting gymnastics at a young age, you would think flipping around was all I wanted to do. But that wasn't the case for me. I had to learn how to love the sport because I had many fears that hindered me mentally. At the age of 8, I had switched gyms to see if gymnastics was the sport for me or if I was just in a negative environment that broke me. It was a whole new perspective being in a positive environment. I literally had to start from the bottom. As my highest score on bars was a 7.4, I refused to run towards the vault, flip backward on the beam, and floor I had to tell myself that I was another person. Gymnastics never came easy to me. I had the twisties countless times and never could figure out how to use the power that my coaches knew I had. My coaches could tell you that I was a very scared yet determined individual. I committed to Cal at the end of my freshman year in high school and after that, I definitely came into my own and started to believe that was great at this sport. College is full of ups and downs but I would say my most memorable year was my junior year because mentally I was not doing well before the season started. But the coaches, athletic department, my teammates, and many others showed me that I am Loved, Wanted, and Needed. Covid was definitely hard on me as I didn't know if I wanted to come back to Berkeley due to having fear of being triggered by being back on campus and falling back into my depression. After long talks on zoom and setting times to talk with our athletic therapist and me sticking to my schedule with my personal Psychologist. I was finally able to fall in love with gymnastics all over again. I really don't know my accolades because I base my achievement on how I feel in that moment and the amazing memory that was created.”

Olivia Lubarsky, Former Gymnast at Towson University

Olivia Lubarsky is a TEDx Speaker and a former NCAA Division 1 gymnast at Towson University. Olivia was a 2020-2021 Ambassador for the College Gymnastics Growth Initiative with the Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association. Olivia was a stalwart voice for Towson University as the commencement speaker for the College of Business & Economics, two-time President of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, and founder of Own Your Roar, a nationally recognized program to address mental health in the realm of athletics. Olivia serves on Mental Health America’s Program Committee, where she provides leadership insight on the development and evolution of MHA’s efforts across all domains. Olivia currently works as the Program Coordinator for the John W. Brick Foundation where she works to integrate holistic and salutogenic approaches into treating mental illness and promoting mental wellness.