Interview With Mia Cusimano

How old were you when you started gymnastics, and what originally drew you to the sport?

I was 7, almost 8 when I started gymnastics. I actually wasn’t interested in gymnastics originally. All I wanted to do was tumble. COVID started and the rec center where I took tumbling classes closed, so my parents took me to a gymnastics gym for tumbling classes. The coaches really wanted me to try gymnastics but I was super stubborn and would only do tumbling. 2 months later my parents convinced me to try gymnastics. It was the very start of their season so I learned my routines a few days before competition, learned what to do on each apparatus, and competed the second week after I started. I ended up in first place, fell in love with it and never looked back.

What was your favorite meet, your favorite and least favorite events, and the hardest/easiest skill you ever trained?

My favorite meet has to have been the Lady Luck Invitational in Las Vegas. I really liked how efficient the meet was, I liked the setup of the gyms, the equipment, and the vibe of the competition. I even got my personal best on floor at that meet with a 9.9. My favorite event has always been floor since I was always drawn to tumbling. I just love the feeling of flying through the air and landing my skills nice and clean. My least favorite event would have to be vault. Over time, I’m starting to enjoy it more, but being very small and not weighing very much, my vault has always been a struggle for me. The hardest skill oddly for me is back walkovers. My shoulders are naturally offset and have very limited flexibility, so they are just awkward for me to do. The easiest skill I ever trained was a front aerial on beam. I learned them by teaching myself at home because I thought they were fun to do.

Gymnastics is incredibly mental. What was your hardest struggle during your time as a gymnast? How did you deal with nerves, pressure, and getting in your head or temporarily "losing" a skill?

I don’t feel like I have had one specific hard struggle. I’ve struggled of course, as every gymnast has, but I feel like every new skill comes with its own struggles. Learning how to approach the skill, learning the timing, learning the form…it’s the struggles that make this the most fun sport to do. If it were easy, everyone would do it.

What was your biggest accomplishment in the sport, and did you ever want to do college gymnastics?

My biggest accomplishment in gymnastics would have to be making the friends that I have made. Gymnastics has connected me with gymnasts from around the world. Two of my closest friends O have met through gymnastics. One lives in Italy and one lives in Denmark. Having yourself surrounded by girls who have the same goals as you is the best feeling in the world. My end goal would absolutely be to do college gymnastics.

How did you cope when your time as a gymnast ended, and did you transition into coaching or are you currently still competing?

I am still competing, but can say that even when I missed 2 weeks of gym for summer break, I was reminded how much I NEED gymnastics in my life. Going that long without being in the gym made me realize how much I love and enjoy it. I couldn’t wait to get back to it!

Who was your gymnastics role model, and what advice would you give to someone starting the sport for the first time?

I have a lot of gymnastics role models, including my teammates and coaches. Specifically though, Sophia Campana has been an amazing mentor to me. She started a program called The Fire Within and I look forward to our calls and talks about mindset and goal setting. She is amazing!

What two goals you want to achieve in the sport of gymnastics?

I would love to get a full scholarship to college and I would love to become a mentor to girls younger than me.