LSU freshman gymnast Kelly Phelan got her start in gymnastics by being at the right place at the right time with a can of paint and a brush.
“My mom’s boyfriend was helping paint a building, and [I] was talking to the lady who owned the building, and she said she was starting a gymnastics gym,” Phelan said. “So me and my sisters just started it for fun and I became attached to it.”
What started off as a hobby quickly grew as Phelan improved as a gymnast.
“I was training and competing and getting better,” Phelan said. “Then when I was going into high school we moved to Orlando and I started training at an Olympic training center.”
After joining Orlando Magic Gymnastics under coach Jeff Wood, Phelan really began to realize her potential. Her team won three Level 10 state championships, and Phelan was regional and state champion in 2001.
She also qualified for nationals three times and finished second on the floor in the 2003 Junior Olympic National Championships.
“[Nationals] were a little nerve-racking, but it was a good experience,” Phelan said. “There were a lot of good gymnasts there and a lot of college coaches watching me. I got to travel a lot so it was fun.”
Those college coaches took notice of Phelan’s strong showing and began aggressively recruiting the Orlando gymnast. Phelan said she chose LSU due to its Southeastern Conference atmosphere and her teammates.
“I’d heard great stuff about LSU, and I wanted to go to an SEC school,” Phelan said. “When I came here for my recruiting trip I got to go to a football game and all the girls were like they had known me for years.”
In her first collegiate competition at the Michigan State quad meet, Phelan posted a 9.850 on the floor, good enough for second place. She also had scores of 9.600 on the beam and 9.675 on the bars.
“I was really nervous,” Phelan said of her first meet. “I didn’t know what to expect.”
Phelan went home for her second meet as LSU traveled to Florida for their SEC opener. With her friends and family watching, the former Orlando star had a solid meet, posting 9.800 marks on the vault and beam — joining sophomore April Burkholder as the only LSU gymnasts to compete in the all-around this season.
Phelan had her best meet of the year this past Friday against No.2 Alabama. In her first home meet, the freshman set career highs with a 9.825 on the vault and a 9.875 on the floor. She also tied her career best with a 9.800 on the balance beam.
“It was great,” Phelan said of her first competition in the PMAC. “Seeing my friends in the stands was really fun. There were almost 4,000 people there, almost a school record. It was really exciting.”
LSU coach D-D Breaux said she was pleased with Phelan’s performance against Alabama.
“She has been relatively consistent for us,” Breaux said. “She made some freshman mistakes early on but did a really good job for us Friday at home.”
“I think her vault we saw [Friday] night was an indiction of how good she can be, but by no means is that her best vault,” Breaux said. “That’s a new vault for her, and she’s in a learning cycle.”
Breaux said that Phelan will continue to improve in competition.
“When she practices with that kind of intensity and exactness, then her performance is going to get better,” Breaux said.