Irvine Gymnast Yim Wins Silver Medal at U.S. Championships
Tabitha Yim of Irvine wasn’t even among the top 15 juniors at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships last year, but Saturday she found herself accepting a silver medal from Nadia Comaneci and flowers from Bela Karolyi, the renowned coach.
Yim, 13, finished second to Kristal Uzelac of Whitehall, Pa., in the junior all-around Saturday at Arco Arena, two days after winning silvers in balance beam and floor exercise in the junior event finals.
It was a strikingly successful meet for Yim and her teammates with the Charter Oak Gliders in Covina. Vanessa Atler, 17, won the silver all-around and gold on vault and beam, and Jamie Dantzscher, 17, shared the gold on bars with Jennie Thompson of Cincinnati, scoring a 9.675.
For Yim, the medals represented an emotional victory. Her father died of an aneurysm three months ago.
“My dad passed away May 26,” Yim said.
Beth Rybacki, her coach, hugged her tightly when she won the silver.
“She said, ‘I’m sure he would be really proud,’ ” Yim said.
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