Wikipedia

Alec Yoder

Alec Yoder (born January 21, 1997) is a retired American artistic gymnast. He was a member of the United States men's national artistic gymnastics team and represented the United States at the 2020 Olympic Games, competing as an individual athlete.[1] He is the 2014 Youth Olympic all-around bronze medalist and the 2019 NCAA champion on pommel horse.

Alec Yoder
Yoder in 2018
Personal information
Full nameCameron Matthew Bock
Country representedUnited States
Born (1997-01-21) January 21, 1997 (age 27)
Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
ResidenceJacksonville Beach, Florida, U.S.
Height5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight145 lb (66 kg)
DisciplineMen's artistic gymnastics
Years on national team2015, 2017–2022
GymInterActive Academy
Indy School of Gymnastics
Deveau's School of Gymnastics
College teamOhio State Buckeyes
Head coach(es)Rustam Sharipov
Assistant coach(es)Cas Suarez, Bob Gauthier
Former coach(es)Gene Watson
RetiredAugust 9, 2022
Medal record
Representing  United States
Men's artistic gymnastics
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Youth Olympic Games 0 0 1
Pacific Rim Championships 1 0 0
Total 1 0 1
Youth Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Nanjing All-around
Pacific Rim Championships
Gold medal – first place 2014 Richmond Team
FIG World Cup
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
FIG World Cup 0 0 1
Total 0 0 1

Early life and education

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Yoder was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on January 21, 1997, to parents Michael and Rebecca Yoder.[2] He began training in gymnastics at age four when his mother took him to a "mommy and me" class.[2] He began training at Deveau's School of Gymnastics in Fishers, Indiana.[3] In July 2009, he left Deveau's and began training with Coach Gene Watson, first at Indy School of Gymnastics[4] and then at InterActive Academy in Zionsville, Indiana.[5] He later enrolled at Ohio State University to pursue gymnastics.

Gymnastics career

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For both the 2013–14 and 2014–15 competitive seasons, he qualified to be a member of the US Men's Junior National Team.[2] He was part of the 2014 Pacific Rim Championships team in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, where he won two gold medals, a silver and a bronze.[2] He was also a part of the 2014 Junior Pan Am Championships in Aracaju, Brazil, where he won four gold medals and a silver.[6]

Yoder won the all-around title at the 2014 Men's Junior Olympic Men's Nationals. He also won the pommel horse and horizontal bar gold medals at that event.[7] Following that event, Yoder was chosen by the United States Olympic Committee to represent the USA at the 2014 Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, China.[8]

On August 19, 2014, Yoder won the bronze medal in the boys' individual all-around at the 2014 Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, China.

At the 2015 Winter Cup in Las Vegas, Yoder finished 8th All Around in the Senior Division and was named to the Men's Senior National Team.[9]

At the 2015 P&G Championships, he led the pommel horse after Day 1 when he scored a rare 15.60 which placed him on the verge of becoming the youngest U.S. champion on pommel horse in 40 years.[10] After suffering a scary fall on Day 2 – he finished 5th in the pommel horse.[11]

At the 2016 Winter Cup Challenge, he finished 9th All Around in the Senior Division.[12]

Yoder's full recovery from labrum and bicep surgery led him to being named back to the Senior National Team for 2017-18[13] after finishing 11th All-Around at the 2017 P&G Championships.

Yoder continued his elite career in February 2018 by again making the 2018 Senior National Team following his performance at the 2018 Winter Cup, where he claimed sixth place in the All-Around and an individual event championship in the pommel horse.[14][15]

In March 2018, Yoder returned to international competition for Team USA for the first time in four years and finished with a bronze medal in pommel horse and a fifth-place finish in the horizontal bar at the Doha World Cup in Doha, Qatar.[16]

In August 2018, Yoder won the national championship in pommel horse and finished fifth All-Around at the US Championships in Boston.[17] He automatically qualified back onto the Senior National Team and was then named to the World Championship Team Squad.[18]

After a third place All-Around finish at the World Team Selection Camp, Yoder was named to the 2018 World Team to compete in Doha, Qatar for Team USA.[19]

After graduation from Ohio State, Yoder continued to compete and returned to the 2020 Elite Winter Cup and won his second Winter Cup pommel horse championship.[20] He repeated in 2021 to accomplish a third Winter Cup pommel horse championship.[21]

After finishing second in the pommel horse at the 2021 US Championships, Yoder was invited to the 2021 Olympic Trials.[22]

After the 2020 Olympic Trials, Yoder was selected to represent the United States at the 2020 Summer Olympics and will compete as an individual athlete rather than on the four-person team.[1]

In Tokyo, Yoder scored the fourth-highest score in pommel horse preliminaries to earn a place in the Olympic Finals.[23] In the finals, he finished sixth.[24]

Yoder then traveled to Japan again for Team USA in October 2021 for the FIG World Championships where he again made the pommel horse event finals, finishing fifth.[25]

Yoder announced his retirement from the sport on August 9, 2022.[26] Yoder finished his competitive career finishing a perfect 12/12 in his final 6 competitions.[27] Yoder and Alex Naddour have the distinction as the only two gymnasts in Team USA history to win at least one US National Championship, NCAA Championship, Olympic Trials Championship and Winter Cup Championship on pommel horse.[28]

College

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On November 12, 2014, Yoder signed a National Letter of Intent accepting a full-ride gymnastics scholarship to compete for the Ohio State University starting in 2015–16.[29] Yoder began classes at Ohio State starting August 25, 2015.

As of April 2016, he has been named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week six times and the Big Ten Gymnast of the Week once. At the 2016 Big Ten Championships, Yoder helped lead the Buckeyes to their first championship since 2007. He also finished second in the all-around and first on the pommel horse. On April 2, 2016, Yoder was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year.[30] On April 16, Yoder became a Three-Time NCAA All American as a Freshman when he finished 5th All-Around at the NCAA Championships, while also finishing 2nd on Pommel Horse and 7th on Still Rings as he helped lead Ohio State to a third-place finish.[31]

Yoder opted for surgery in May 2016 to repair a torn labrum and torn bicep sustained at the 2016 Big Ten Championships in event finals. His recovery was in time to compete in 2017 where he won four pommel horse event titles capped off by helping lead Ohio State to back-to-back Big Ten Team Championships,[32] a silver medal on parallel bars at Big Ten event finals,[33] and then a second-place team finish at NCAAs where he finished in sixth in the All-Around and fourth in pommel horse less than a year after surgery.[34]

At NCAAs in 2018, Yoder finished third in the All-Around, fourth in pommel horse, and seventh in parallel bars.[35] This made 8 All American honors for Yoder in the first three years at Ohio State.

In April 2019, Yoder won his second Big Ten pommel horse championship [36] and then followed that up with the NCAA pommel horse championship.[37] He also was an All American on parallel bars - ending his collegiate career with 10 All American Awards, tied for fourth in Ohio State history.[37]

Personal life

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Before entering Ohio State, Alec Yoder was home-schooled by his parents starting after second grade. He has two siblings, Austin and Ashlyn.[38] Yoder is a Christian.[38] [citation needed]

Yoder turned professional in May 2019 and is represented by Shade Global.[39] In July 2019, he was featured in a Hugo Boss modeling campaign called the Suit Challenge, becoming one of the few men's artistic gymnasts to cross over into fashion modeling.[40]

Competitive history

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Year Event Team AA FX PH SR VT PB HB
Junior
2013 U.S. National Championships 6  
International Junior Mexican Cup    
2014
Pan American Championships           8
Pacific Rim Championships         5 4
Youth Olympic Games   7 4
Senior
2015 Winter Cup 8 32   10 20 20 7
U.S. National Championships 20 30 5 12 22 35 9
2016 Winter Cup 9 25 16 6 23 18 14
NCAA Championships   5   7
2017 Winter Cup 6 16
NCAA Championships   4 6
U.S. National Championships 11 9 6 18 22 20 14
2018 Winter Cup 6 18   7 13   10
Doha World Cup   5
NCAA Championships   4 7
U.S. National Championships 5 12   8 19 4 13
World Team Trials  
World Championships 4
2019 NCAA Championships 10   6 19
National Qualifier 4
2020 Winter Cup  
2021 Winter Cup    
U.S. National Championships   8
Olympic Trials   8
Olympic Games 6
World Team Trials  
World Championships 5

References

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  1. ^ a b "Sam Mikulak, Yul Moldauer, Brody Malone highlight U.S. Olympic men's gymnastics team". OlympicTalk | NBC Sports. 2021-06-26. Retrieved 2021-06-26.
  2. ^ a b c d "USA Gymnastics | Alec Yoder". usagym.org. Archived from the original on 12 February 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  3. ^ "Deveaus". Deveaus. Retrieved 2017-03-27.
  4. ^ https://indygym.com Archived 2014-09-04 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ "InterActive Boys Team Gymnastics". Archived from the original on 2014-09-04. Retrieved 2014-08-27.
  6. ^ "USA Gymnastics | Yoder wins three individual event gold medals at 2014 Junior Pan Am Championships". usagym.org. Archived from the original on 2 July 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  7. ^ "USA Gymnastics | Junior Elite Level 10 championships decided at Men's Junior Olympic Nationals". Archived from the original on 2014-08-09. Retrieved 2014-07-14.
  8. ^ "USA Gymnastics | Four gymnasts are part of the official U.S. Delegation for 2014 Youth Olympic Games". usagym.org. Archived from the original on 9 August 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  9. ^ "U.S. Men's Senior National Team named after 2015 Winter Cup". USA Gymnastics. USA Gymnastics. 22 Feb 2015. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)[1] Archived 2023-04-25 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ "Indy native slips in standings, but has chance at pommel horse title". Indystar.com. 2015-08-14. Retrieved 2017-03-27.
  11. ^ "Slip-up costs Alec Yoder a national gymnastics title". Indystar.com. 2015-08-16. Retrieved 2017-03-27.
  12. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-04-17. Retrieved 2016-04-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  13. ^ "USA Gymnastics | Men's Senior National Team Rosters". Archived from the original on 2017-09-05. Retrieved 2017-09-05.
  14. ^ "USA Gymnastics names 2018 U.S. Men's National Team following Winter Cup". Archived from the original on 2018-02-20. Retrieved 2018-02-19.
  15. ^ "Mikulak, Hong win Winter Cup Challenge all-around titles". Archived from the original on 2018-02-20. Retrieved 2018-02-19.
  16. ^ "Alec Yoder Finishes Third On Pommel Horse In World Cup Debut". Team USA. 23 March 2018. Archived from the original on March 23, 2018. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  17. ^ "Mikulak wins fifth senior men's all-around title at 2018 U.S. Gymnastics Championships". Archived from the original on 2023-04-25. Retrieved 2018-08-23.
  18. ^ "USA Gymnastics names 2018-19 U.S. Men's National Team, World Championships Team squad, Senior Pan American Championships Team". Archived from the original on 2023-04-25. Retrieved 2018-08-23.
  19. ^ "USA Gymnastics names U.S. Men's Team for 2018 World Championships". Archived from the original on 2018-10-05. Retrieved 2018-10-04.
  20. ^ "Mikulak wins four event medals, Benas claims Junior All-Around Title at 2020 Winter Cup Challenge | Winter Cup". 24 February 2020.
  21. ^ "Winter Cup individual men's event champions named, four additional gymnasts earn U.S. Men's National Team berths | Winter Cup". March 2021.
  22. ^ "USA Gymnastics names eight additional athletes to Men's Junior and Senior National Teams, introduces inaugural Senior Development Team lineup". Archived from the original on 2022-01-19. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  23. ^ "Alec Yoder Qualifies for Pommel Horse Finals in Tokyo". 24 July 2021.
  24. ^ "Ohio State gymnast Alec Yoder finishes sixth in pommel horse at Tokyo Olympics". MSN.
  25. ^ "Indy gymnast Alec Yoder misses medal behind gold-winning U.S. Teammate".
  26. ^ @AlecYoder (August 9, 2022). "It's time to move onto the next chapter. Thanks for everything. I love you all❤️" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  27. ^ @kensleyanne (October 24, 2021). "Also...he hit 12/12 pommel horse routines this year. No one else can say that" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  28. ^ "USA Gymnastics | Alec Yoder".
  29. ^ "Yoder, Burke & Moldauer Among Top NCAA MAG Recruits For 2015-2016". StickItMedia. 2014-11-12. Retrieved 2017-03-27.
  30. ^ "No. 3 Buckeyes Sweep B1G Awards, Win Three Event Finals :: The Ohio State University official athletic site: Men's Gymnastics". Ohiostatebuckeyes.com. 2 April 2016. Retrieved 2017-03-27.
  31. ^ "Johnson Wins National Title on High Bar, Buckeyes Finish 3rd at NCAAS: The Ohio State University official athletic site :: Men's Gymnastics". Ohiostatebuckeyes.com. 17 April 2016. Retrieved 2017-03-27.
  32. ^ "Ohio State Wins 14th Conference Title in Program History". 8 April 2017.
  33. ^ "Martin Wins High Bar, Dastrup and Yoder Share Silver on Parallel Bars". 8 April 2017.
  34. ^ "Ohio State Registers Highest Finish at NCAAs Since 2005". 22 April 2017.
  35. ^ "Yoder Finishes Third in All-Around as Buckeyes Compete at NCAA Championships". 21 April 2018.
  36. ^ "Alec Yoder Wins B1G Pommel Horse Championship". 6 April 2019.
  37. ^ a b "Alec Yoder Wins Pommel Horse National Championship". 21 April 2019.
  38. ^ a b "What's it take to make the Olympics?". Indystar.com. 2014-08-15. Retrieved 2017-03-27.
  39. ^ "Alec Yoder – Gymnast". 9 November 2018.
  40. ^ "Meet Alec Yoder, the elite gymnast who models in his free time". USA Today.
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