Interview With Brody Malone

I got the opporunity to interview Brody Malone on October 26th and do an zoom interview. So nice to hear his gymnastics story!

How old were you when you first set foot in a gym, and what drew you to gymnastics?

I was three when I started. It's kind of one of those classic stories—I was just one of those kids with way too much energy, and my parents thought it would be a good idea to put me in a safe environment to burn it off. They put me in the "mommy and me" classes when I was little, and I just kind of fell in love with it. I never really wanted to stop, so I just kept going.

Across all six events, what is your favorite to compete on, and what is a single skill that took you a long time to learn?

My favorite event in general is High Bar, but competing on High Bar is kind of stressful, I’m not gonna lie.

The one event where I can take a breath, relax, salute, and know "I’ve got this" is Rings. It’s not a rest event physically, but it’s more of a mental rest event. You just make sure you hold your strength and put the dismount on your feet, so I really enjoy competing in that one. But overall, High Bar is my favorite.

As for a skill that took a long time to learn: on High Bar, the Winkler (a layout Jaeger). That skill took me a while because it was such a new release move for me—I had never done Jaegers before. I had been doing Tkatchevs and Kovacs-style releases for a really long time, so the Winkler was mind-boggling. It didn't take me long to catch it, but it took a long time to get it consistently. Once I figured out a couple of mental keywords and things to focus on, I was able to start catching it reliably.

Do you have a backup skill if you miss a connection or run into issues with the Winkler?

This is actually something we went through at the World Championships. Right after I competed it at US Championships and made the World team, FIG released specific evaluation guidelines for that skill—if you piked more than 45 degrees, they stripped the skill's value entirely.

During qualifications at Worlds, I piked too much and they took away the credit, dropping my start value by six-tenths. I barely snuck into finals in 7th or 8th place. That entire week leading into finals, we were trying to figure out what routine I was going to do. I had three or four backup options, including doing a Zou Li Min (a one-armed giant) into a big dismount. Having backup routines ready was crucial.

What went into your decision to switch training centers to EVO Gymnastics in Florida?

The majority of my thought process came down to managing my knee injury.

2023 was my fifth and final year competing on Stanford’s collegiate team. Continuing to train there as a non-collegiate athlete made getting specialized medical care trickier—the athletic trainers naturally prioritized current Stanford student-athletes.

At the same time, the head athletic trainer and PT for USA Gymnastics was moving down to EVO in Florida. Moving to Florida was honestly the hardest decision I’ve ever made because I love Stanford, the coaches, the medical team, and my teammates. But I knew it was what was best for my body. It wasn't just my knee; because of the time off and surgeries, my shoulders, wrists, elbows, ankles, and back all needed intensive treatment. EVO allowed me to get comprehensive care for all of it.

When you suffered your major knee injury in 2023, did you ever think you wouldn't be able to come back?

In my mind, I always wanted to come back, but there was definitely uncertainty. Right after the injury happened in Germany, I had an external fixator put on. When I got back to Stanford for the first major surgery, they fixed one part of my knee, but they had to wait two weeks for the swelling to drop before doing an MRI to see the full extent of the ligament damage.

During those two weeks, I mentally prepared assuming every ligament was torn. Luckily, my ACL was intact, which kept the recovery timeline aligned with making a push for the Olympics. Interestingly, my dad told me after the Paris Olympics that right after my first surgery at Stanford, the doctors out in the hallway told him I would probably never do gymnastics again. He kept that from me until after Paris, which was probably for the best! Once we knew the exact damage and the plan, it was a sigh of relief knowing the timeline matched up.

What was your hardest struggle overall, and how did you overcome it?

Up until my knee injury, I had been blessed never to have a major injury or surgery—just typical gymnast wear-and-tear on my wrists and shoulders. Going through a major reconstruction was tough, but I approached recovery with the same attitude I bring to gymnastics: put my head down, do the work, and make sure every single day is as productive as possible to get back to where I was.

When facing setbacks—whether in daily training, competition, or injury recovery—how do you reset mentally and move forward?

It comes down to having a short memory.

In competition, if I’m competing all-around, I view it as six individual competitions rather than one big event. When I step up to Floor, I focus 100% on Floor until I step off the podium. As soon as I salute at the end, that event is over, and my mind shifts entirely to Pommel Horse—regardless of how Floor went. You can’t let one bad routine turn into a bad competition. You can't change the judges' scores, so the only thing you can control is doing your job on the next event.

In training, if I have a day where nothing is clicking or my body is beat up, I scale things down to be productive. If I can't catch a release move, I'll switch to using a mat slider, or do drills, or go back to basic taps. Finding a way to make progress—even if it's just fundamental drills—on the days you don't feel 100% is what makes you a better gymnast.

Do you have your eyes set on the LA 2028 Olympics?

Yes, I do!

After the Paris Olympics and World Championships, I had a lot of major life events happen all at once—I got married, moved in with my wife Serena, got a dog, and went on our honeymoon. For a long time, gymnastics had taken 100% of my time and energy. Transitioning into married life, Serena became my number one priority, and I had to learn how to balance my personal life with the sport.

Serena and I decided it was best for me to take some time off. We moved back home to Georgia to be close to both of our families and take the year to reflect. After taking that time to rest and reset, we made the decision that it makes the most sense to go back and make a push for LA 28. If it happens, it will be my third Olympic Games—and a home Olympics in the US is a massive motivator.

From NCAA titles to World Championship and Olympic Medals, What do you consider your biggest accomplishment in the sport so far?

Definitely the team bronze medal in Paris.

I am a huge advocate for team competitions. I’m proud of my individual medals, but nothing compares to winning a team medal alongside your brothers. That’s what I loved about NCAA gymnastics at Stanford—it’s so much more rewarding when you're relying on each other and pulling together for a shared goal. Winning that bronze in Paris for Team USA is by far my favorite memory.

What is it like being coached by Sam Mikulak?

It’s such a cool full-circle story. Sam was my gymnastics idol when I was growing up. I watched him compete in the London 2012 Olympics when I was 12 years old, and I watched him again in Rio. The first time I met him at a Senior National Team camp when I was 18, he knew my name, and I was completely starstruck just having lunch with him.

Fast forward a few years: he became my teammate at the Tokyo Olympics. And now, he’s my coach at EVO! Going from idolizing him, to being his Olympic teammate, to having him as my coach is awesome. He’s super laid-back—a total California surfer bro—and he always lightens the mood and makes training fun

What are one or two pieces of advice you would give to young athletes striving for college gymnastics or the Olympics?

One of my favorite quotes of all time is: "Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard."

When I was growing up, I would remind myself in the gym: "There is someone out there working harder than me right now." That fueled my motivation. I knew a lot of insanely talented kids growing up who just didn't put in the work, and eventually, I was able to pass them because I consistently worked hard. Carrying that mindset into every practice is the best advice I can give any young athlete.