It was quite a hectic trip to the United States for Leanne Wong. The American gymnast’s participation in the 2024 Swiss Cup left her with an interesting day of her life followed by a devastating end. The prestigious event, however, led her to face one of the biggest disappointments seen in her professional career.
The UF senior, who won two gold medals at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships, made her appearance while serving as an alternate for Team USA in the 2024 Summer Paris Olympics. Soon after she made her appearance in the Swiss Cup, but to her surprise, the journey to Switzerland was quite hectic.
Leanne Wong overcomes challenges for her Swiss Cup appearance
ADVERTISEMENT Article continues below this ad
Leanne Wong came with the hope of bringing her own game to Switzerland. But little did she know she had to face such a struggling journey towards her Swiss Cup participation. Faced with both before and after effects, for Leanne, the chance to represent the US came with unexpected difficulties during her travel to Zurich.
The start of the day saw her ending up on a 24-hour-long trip with delays during her journey from Gainesville airport to Atlanta with no luggage at hand. “I was super thankful to get there 24 hours later, until all of my bags did not show up. Everyone’s bags—my coach’s, my mom’s, like, all their bags—showed up, except for mine. So, I was like, ‘OK, this is going great, I guess.’”
Starting with struggles at first, the aftereffects of the performance, however, left her with disappointments in the Swiss Cup competition. Continuing with the challenge, the gymnast was left with an injury suffered while performing. But it was not just her performance but also her male teammates together that led to an underperformance showcased by Team USA against its competitors.
Wong representing Team USA at Swiss Cup
Leanne Wong competed for the United States at the 41st annual Swiss Cup, Zürich competition held in November. Not just as an alternative, but she was a competing athlete, representing Team USA for the seventh time. The gymnast’s participation at the event consisted of her teammate Fuzzy Benas, a junior player at the University of Oklahoma who is also a member of the men’s national team.
ADVERTISEMENT Article continues below this ad
Coming with big hope, an unfortunate early miss while performing in the uneven bars ended her with a record of 11.10. The added performance by Benas in the opened floor exercise of 13.80 contributed to a total coming in at 24.90 in the preliminary round. The score, however, took away Team USA’s chance to advance to the second round with a ninth position overall.
ADVERTISEMENT Article continues below this ad
With none of them getting past the prelims, the disappointment was not the end, as stated by the Florida Gators gymnast. “It was just an interesting trip and didn’t end the way they wanted to. But that’s OK. Champions keep moving.” Entering the new year now, all that is left for Leanna Wong is to get ahead in preparation for the next win and get ready to make the 2025 season a successful one competing as a senior player at the University of Florida.
Disappointed Gymnast Representing America Clears Air About Travel Issues
- Advertisment - 