Career

Early career (before 2003)

Chellsie Memmel was born in West Allis, Wisconsin, and began gymnastics as soon as she could walk. Both of her parents were gymnastics coaches and they encouraged her to play around in the gym and taught her basic gymnastics. When she was 8 years old they realized she would be better off working with a coach who had more expertise so they had her work with Jim Chudy of Salto Gymnastics.

She began competing as an elite in 2000.

2003 season

Memmel began competing as a Senior International Elite gymnast in 2003. She placed third at the National Podium Meet and American Classic. She was invited to compete at the Pacific Challenge, a tri-meet with Canada and Australia. At that competition, she won the All-Around.

At 2003 U.S. Nationals, Memmel was coming off of a hamstring injury which had limited her training time. She made mistakes during her floor routine and placed tenth in the all around. At the Worlds Selection Camp several weeks later, Memmel was selected to the Pan-American Games team, but not for the World Championships.

Memmel won the all-around and the uneven bars at the Pan-American Games. She won a total of four medals overall. During this time, the gymnasts who had been chosen for the World Championships team were dealing with injuries and illnesses (Annia Hatch hurt her knee, Ashley Postell had a severe case of the flu and Courtney Kupets severely hurt her Achilles. At the time, Memmel was the third alternate to the World Championships, after Samantha Sheehan (although not used) and Terin Humphrey. Marta Karolyi, the National Team Coordinator, selected Memmel to compete at the World Championships. Memmel flew from the Pan American Games directly to the World Championships.

Memmel led the American team in the team preliminaries, finishing second in the world as an individual and qualifying first among all Americans to the all-around competition. In the team finals, Memmel was the only American selected to compete in every event. The U.S. team won its first team gold medal at the World Championships. They won this medal without fielding a full team, competing with only five gymnasts in the team finals instead of six.

On the day of team finals, Memmel earned the highest all-around score in the world and was now a favorite for All-Around gold. She became an individual World Champion on the uneven bars, tying with teammate Hollie Vise.

2004 season

In 2004, Memmel competed at the American Cup and placed third place behind Carly Patterson and Courtney McCool. During a training camp in April, Memmel broke the metatarsal in her foot while training a piked barani on beam. Memmel was unable to compete at Nationals or at the Olympic Trials.

She petitioned for a chance to compete at the Olympics Selection camp, but she was not able to compete there to the best of her abilities. The head of the Olympic selection committee, Marta Karolyi, told Memmel not to train floor exercise or vault, but rather to focus on bars and balance beam, her stronger events. Memmel did as she was told. At the end of the selection, Memmel was named as one of the alternates to the U.S. Olympic team.

After the Games, Memmel won the uneven bars at the 2004 World Cup Final.

2005 season

Memmel began the 2005 season at the American Cup, which did not have an All-Around competition that year. She won the uneven bars competition and placed third on beam.

She placed fourth in the All-Around at the U.S. Classic. She won the silver medal in the All-Around at the U.S. Championships behind Nastia Liukin. Memmel was named to the team for the Pan-American Games, where she won the All-Around title and the individual gold medals on beam and uneven bars.

Memmel was named to the 2005 World Championship team, along with teammates Nastia Liukin, Alicia Sacramone, and Jana Bieger. At Worlds, Memmel won the all-around title by 0.001 over Liukin.

Memmel's win made her the third American woman, and the first since 1994, to win the All-Around at the World Championships. At the 2005 World Championships, Memmel also won the silver medals on balance beam and uneven bars.

After her success at the 2005 Worlds, Memmel decided to turn professional, thereby giving up her NCAA eligibility.

2006 season

Memmel began 2006 by competing at the Pacific Alliance Championships, where she tied in the All-Around with Nastia Liukin.

Memmel injured her shoulder while training an overshoot at the Pacific Alliance Championships. She decided to not compete at the U.S. Classic in 2006 to protect her shoulder. Two weeks later, she competed watered down routines at the U.S. Championships, where she placed 4th in the All-Around. She was named to the 2006 World Championships team.

At the 2006 World Championships, Memmel was still dealing with her injured shoulder. The U.S. did well in qualifying. Memmel qualified first for the all around finals and also qualified to the uneven bars and floor event finals as well. Memmel fell on her Hindorf release move on bars in the second rotation. On the balance beam, Memmel was able to steady herself from falling off beam when she landed a front tuck with one foot completely off the beam.

Memmel's fall from the uneven bars reaggravated her shoulder injury from earlier in the year, and Memmel was left with a tear in her shoulder. Memmel later withdrew from the all-around competition and from event finals.

2007 season

Memmel was still recovering from her shoulder injury in August, 2007, when the Nationals were held. She competed on the floor exercise on the first day of the U.S. Championships.

After the success of the 2007 World Team in Stuttgart, Memmel decided to make her all-around comeback at the Good Luck Beijing International Invitational, a test meet for the Olympic Games. The gymnasts competed in the same arena and on the same apparatuses that would be used at the Olympics. Memmel placed fifth in the all-around and third on beam, where she performed new skills including a front aerial to prone mount. Her uneven bars routine did not qualify her for event finals.

Following the Beijing test event, Memmel traveled to the Toyota Cup in Toyota City Japan where she won the gold medal on floor exercise and the silver on balance beam. After her first All-Around competition in a year, Memmel said, "I'm not all the way back yet -- my floor was basically the same, but there are a few more things I want to add.... For the routines that I did, I'd say I was competing at about 80 percent. But in the gym, I'm at 90. My shoulder is good. My ankle is healed."

2008 season

In 2008, Memmel continued to work on perfecting her beam and floor routines while also raising the difficulty on her uneven bars routine. In May, 2008 she competed at an international competition along with other gymnasts who had not competed earlier in 2008 and wanted to prove their Olympic readiness to Márta Károlyi.

In June, Memmel competed in the U.S. National Championships, placing third behind Liukin and Johnson in the all-around. Memmel did well on uneven bars and balance beam, and competed a new, upgraded floor routine which included the Dos Santos skill she had competed in earlier years.

At the U.S. Olympic Trials held two weeks after Nationals, she again performed well on bars and beam, and received a standing ovation for her floor exercise routine on the final night of competition. Memmel was named to the selection camp where the U.S. Olympic Team would be chosen.

Memmel was named to the 2008 Olympic Team at the selection camp in New Waverly, Texas. Despite giving herself whiplash and having to stop in the middle of her first routine, the floor exercise, Memmel competed on beam later that day. On the final day of the selection camp, Memmel nailed a bars routine and landed a double twisting yurchenko for the first time in competition since 2006.

On August 3, 2008, it was announced by USA gymnastics that Memmel had injured her ankle during training in Beijing. It was announced that the injury was not major, and she was still expected to compete, though she would be limited to one event: uneven bars. Later on, however, it was revealed that the injury was not in fact a sprain, but a broken bone, covered up as a sprain. Even with this injury, Memmel competed on the uneven bars in the team qualification round but fell. At the team finals, she also performed on the uneven bars, that time a clean routine.

2011 season

On July 23, 2011, Memmel returned to competition at the CoverGirl Classic in Chicago, Illinois, where she won the silver medal in the all-around (56.95). Memmel placed fourth on floor (13.65) and fifth on balance beam (14.7), and she tied with gymnast Bridgette Caquatto for fifth on vault (14.2).

At August's 2011 Senior National Championships in St. Paul, Minnesota, Memmel earned the silver medal on balance beam, with a two-night score of 30. She finished night one of the competition in third place all-around (57.35), with a first-place finish on beam (15.25). On night two, Memmel slipped to an eighth-place finish in the all-around (109.85), after she dislocated her shoulder during her bars routine and did not finish the routine.

She later headed to the Karolyi Ranch in New Waverly, Texas, to participate in both selection camps for the 2011 World Championships team. Rather than being named to the 2011 Worlds team, Memmel was named to the team for the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico in October.

Memmel had a similar experience with the 2003 World Team selection camps, which she also attended while coming back from injury. At the conclusion of those selection camps, Memmel was named to the Pan American team rather than the Worlds team, though she was later named to the Worlds team as well.

Memmel subsequently withdrew from the 2011 Pan Am Games team, so that she could continue rehabbing her injured shoulder. Soon after her return from the second selection camp, Memmel underwent surgery to repair a torn biceps tendon near her right shoulder.

2012 season

Memmel underwent a second surgery on her shoulder in February, and began a comeback attempt shortly thereafter to clench a spot on the 2012 Olympic Team. Competing only 1 event at the US Secret Classic, Memmel fell twice on her balance beam routine and scored an 11.95. Her petition to compete in the US Visa National Championships was subsequently declined by the selection committee immediately following the meet, thus ending her comeback attempt for the 2012 season.

Technique and skills

Eponymous skills

Apparatus	Name	Description	Difficulty	Notes
Floor Exercise	Memmel Turn	Double turn with leg fully extended in a "Y"	D	Also referred to as a double Y turn

Competitive Skills

Chellsie Memmel often competed the following skills in competition on each apparatus (from 2005-2008 CoP)

Vault

Double twisting yurchenko (2005, 2006) (5.8 difficulty), 1.5 twisting yurchenko (2003, 2007-2009) (5.5 difficulty), Full twisting yurchenko (2011) (5.0 difficulty)

Uneven Bars

7.0 Difficulty Start Value for the Routine

Jump to mount on high bar; Kip Cast to Handstand (KCH) (B) + Hip Circle to Counter Straddle Reverse Hecht (Hindorff) (E) + Pak Salto (D); KCH (B) + Stalder Shaposhnikova (Chow) (D) + Overshoot to Handstand (D) + Stalder shoot up to high bar (Ray) (C); KCH (B) + Toe-on Circle (C) + Giant 1/1 (C) + Straddled Tkatchev (D); KCH (B) + Giant 1/2 (B) + Jam to handstand (Luo) (E) + Tucked Double Front Dismount (D).

Balance Beam

6.8 Difficulty Start Value for the Routine

Stoop to rear support mount (A); Split Jump (A) + Wolf Jump (A); Piked Barani (Front Layout 1/2, takeoff from two feet) (Memmel) (E); Switch Split Leap (C) + Back Tuck (C); Standing Arabian (F); Illusion Turn (D); Front Tuck (D) + Flip Flop step-out (B) + Layout Step-Out (C); Front Aerial Walkover (D); Free Aerial Cartwheel (D); Round-off (B) + Double Pike Dismount (E).

Floor Exercise

6.3 Difficulty Start Value for the Routine

Round-off + Flip Flop two-feet + Piked Arabian Double Front (Dos Santos I) (F); Round-off + Flip Flop two-feet + Double Layout (F); Double Turn with leg held in split (Memmel) (C); Switch Split Ring Leap (C) + Split Leap 1/1 (C); Round-off + Flip Flop two-feet + Back Layout 5/2 (D) + Front Layout (B); Straddle Jump 3/2 (C); Round-off + Flip Flop two-feet + Back Layout 2/1 (C); Round-off + Flip Flop two-feet + Double Pike (D).

Coaching history

Both of Memmel's parents, Andy and Jeanelle Memmel, are former gymnasts and coaches, and they co-own M&M Gymnastics in Wisconsin. When Memmel began the sport she was coached by her parents, but as she became older they chose to send her to Jim Chudy of Salto Gymnastics in Wisconsin. After the 2004 Olympics, Memmel asked her father, Andy, if he would coach her again.

She is coached by Andy Memmel and Laurie Glazer at M&M Gymnastics.

Personal life

Memmel was rumored to be dating San Francisco Giants Third Baseman Ryan Rohlinger; however, Rohlinger stated in the San Francisco Chronicle that the rumor isn't true and that he doesn't even know Memmel. However, Rohlinger also commented, "I think it would be fun to meet her because she's an Olympic medalist and she's from my home state."

Memmel purchased her first home (a three-bedroom ranch) in West Allis, Wisconsin.

On July 28, Memmel got engaged to Kory Maier, a mechanical engineer. They married in August 2013.

On August 11 2014, Memmel announced on her Twitter account that she is expecting her first child with her husband Kory Maier. On February 5th, 2015, she gave birth to a baby boy, Dashel Dean Maier.

Endorsements

Chellsie Memmel appeared in a Johnson & Johnson commercial.

She participated in a Vogue photoshoot with Annie Leibovitz along with other World medalists and Olympians Shawn Johnson, Nastia Liukin, and Alicia Sacramone.

Retirement

Memmel announced on November 14, 2012 that she was going to retire from gymnastics. She was a six-time World medalist, and 2008 Olympic silver-medalist.

Competitive history

Year	Event	Team	AA	VT	UB	BB	FX
2000	American Classic		7
	Puerto Rico Cup		1st		2nd	1st	1st
	USA vs. France	1st	2nd
2002	American Classic (Junior)		10			4	8
	USA/Belgium	1st	1st	3rd	1st	2nd	1st
	International Gymnastics Championships	1st			3rd
	Podium Meet					9	4
	U.S. Classic (Junior)		4		9	3rd	3rd
	USA Gymnastics Championships (Junior)		3rd		5	3rd	2nd
	USA/Mexico Friendship Competition	1st	3rd				2nd
2003	American Classic		3rd		1st	1st
	Pacific Challenge (USA/CAN/AUS)	1st			1st
	National Podium Meet		3rd	5	5		2nd
	USA Gymnastics Championships		10		7	6
	Pan American Games	1st	1st		1st	3rd
	World Championships	1st	8		1st	6
2004	American Cup		3rd
	Pan American Individual Event Championships				1st	1st
	World Cup Final				1st
2005	American Cup				1st	3rd
	USA/SUI	1st		1st	2nd	3rd
	USA/GBR	1st			1st
	Pan American Championships	1st	1st		1st	1st
	U.S. Classic		4	7	3rd	2nd	14
	USA Gymnastics Championships		2nd		2nd	2nd	3rd
	World Championships		1st		2nd	2nd
2006	Pacific Alliance Championships	1st	1st			1st	2nd
	USA Gymnastics Championships		4		5	4	3rd
	World Championships	2nd
2007	U.S. Classic			5
	Good Luck Beijing International Tournament		5			3rd	3rd
	Toyota Cup					2nd	1st
2008	Friendship International Exchange		3rd		1st	5
	USA Gymnastics Championships		3rd		2nd	4	4
	Olympic Trials		3rd		2nd	2nd	2nd
	Olympic Games	2nd
2009	USA Gymnastics Championships					8
2011	U.S. Classic		2nd	5	6	5	4
	USA Gymnastics Championships		8			2nd	6
2012	U.S. Classic					21

[ Source: Wikipedia ]