Michigan Gymnastics and a Dream of an 8-Year-Old
10/20/2017 12:52:00 PM | Women's Gymnastics, Features
By Jacob Feldman
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- When she was eight years old, University of Michigan women's gymnastics freshman Sam Javanbakht fell in love with her future school while watching a Michigan-Minnesota gymnastics meet on TV.
Flipping through the channels with her mom, Javanbakht stumbled across the meet. A gymnast herself, she was very excited to see college gymnastics on TV because she didn't know that existed. Afterward she told everyone that she wanted to go to Michigan, even though college wasn't anywhere in her near future.
"I fell in love with the Michigan team, the way they competed and the way they supported each other," said Javanbakht.
She remembers watching Kylee Botterman, Sarah Curtis and Jordan Sexton put together beautiful floor routines in fantastic leotards.
As she grew up, one of the gymnasts from her club, Brooke Parker, transferred to U-M. The work ethic Parker showed when she was home gave Javanbakht another reason to dream of Michigan.
"I remember always having her as someone to look up to," said Javanbakht. "She was always their training no matter what. She had a really good attitude and showed me that even if you are battling through some things you should continue to work."
When she got to high school she wasn't sure that dream would become a reality. She applied to the University of Michigan knowing it was a really good school, but wasn't sure if she would be able to do college gymnastics with all of her injuries suffered in high school. She was late to the recruiting process and it wasn't until the spring of 2017 when Michigan gave her that opportunity.
"It was a dream come true," Javanbakht said after receiving the offer from Michigan.
She received a text from the U-M coaches after her gymnastics practice saying they were going to call. She hurried out of the gym without telling a soul that she was expecting a phone call from Michigan. She received the offer but kept the news to herself, not calling friends or family -- including her mom and dad. When she finally arrived back home, she said, "Mom, you're going to have to buy a lot of Michigan gear."
Javanbakht has now started her freshman year at Michigan. She always knew that Michigan had great gymnastics and that the academics were top notch, but had no idea how much she was getting by coming to the University of Michigan.
"The fact that we have the academic center to study in, treatment every day, psychical therapy; we get all these added benefits that I didn't know about so it was a nice surprise."
She has focused on adding skills and focusing on the technique of each skill. Something she has said the Michigan coaching staff has helped her a great deal within her first two months on campus.
Javanbakht has always had a strong emphasis on academics recording over a 4.0 GPA all four years of high school. She is planning to major in sport management and is also on the pre-med track.
"I like the idea of being the best at school," said Javanbakht. "Everyone focused on being great at school or something outside of school, but I always thought that I could do both. I always put a lot of pressure on myself to do well in school and gymnastics."
Throughout high school, she coached preschool gymnastics where she realized that she had a passion for working with kids. That has translated to Michigan, where the entire team has the opportunity to go to Mott's Children Hospital and interact with the patients. In addition to her coaching of pre-school gymnastics, Javanbakht engaged in community service by coaching Special Olympics athletes where she helped them with skills.
Come this January, young kids will be watching college gymnastics for the first time and this time it will be Javanbakht who inspires them to dream of becoming a Michigan Wolverine. Â
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