Wednesday, March 14, 1D34
Daily Hebraskan
Pago 13
Retiring gymn
on long, succe
By Scott Alilstrand
At 22, UNL senior Kim Grabowski
has reached the end of her competitive
gymnastics career.
Twenty-two may seem too young to .
be considered "over the hill," but in
women's gymnastics, 20-year-old3 are
veterans.
Encouraged by her mother, Grabow
ski started gymnastics by enrolling in a
dance class. Uninterested in dancing,
the 4-year-old Grabowski regularly look
ed forward to the tumbling sessions at
the end of the day. At seven,-dancing
was given up, and gymnastics became
an obsession. She joined the Nebraska
School of Gymnastics and came under
the tutelage of Nebraska men's gym-"
nasties Coach Francis Allen.
"Kim's always had a lot of energy
ever since she was little," Grabowslti's
mother Pam said. "I think gymnastics
has been good for her. It seems to have
been a good outlet."
Grabowski attended tournaments
with the school until her sophomore
year in high school when she com
peted for Lincoln Northeast. A high
school All-American, Grabowski opted
to compete for the Nebraska School of
Gymnastics during her senior year.
"I wanted to make sure that I'd get a
scholarship at Nebraska, and the best
way to do that was to compete for the
school," Grabowski reasoned. TThe coach
ing and the equipment at the school
were also a lot better than North
east's." .
Four years later, Grabowski has
been the recipient of several gymnastics-awards.
The 1983 Big Eight all
around champion, Grabowski made
the All-Conference team in each of her
first three years.
Along with the honors came a series
of injuries. A dislocated elbow put
Grabowski out for two months as a
freshman. The assorted bumps and
bruises have taken their toll.
"The injuries get really tiresome
after a while. They nag at you," Gra-
ast reminisces
ssful career
bowski said. "They're one thing I won't
miss when I'm finished."
In addition to the physical effort she
puts into gymnastics, Grabowski has
worked on her mental game.
"Physically, a lot of people are capa
ble of doing a trick. But a lot of people
can't handle the mental part of it,"
Grabowski said.
A fearless competitor as a youngs
ter, Grabowski has taken a more cau
tious approach to her tricks.
"It seems the older I get, the more
chicken I become," Grabowski said.
"When you're a kid you just do it. You
don't think of the consequences that
could happen. Mentally, I'm much bet
ter at preparing for meets now."
While Grabowski cited her natural
ability to learn tricks quickly and her
lack of a weight problem as two of the
key ingredients in her success, she also
emphasized the help of her team
mates. "You're always pushing each other.
You're not really working against each
other, as you are against yourself,"
Grabowski said. "If you're fighting for a
spot in the lineup, you work your buns
off to make it. But you're not doing it to
beat someone out, you're doing it to
help the team."
Grabowski said she hopes to use her
special education major to coach gym
nastics in the future.
"The people in gymnastics are great,"
Grabowski said. "It's been a part of me
since I was seven years old and it's
something I don't want to give up."
With only regional and possible nat
ional competition ahead of her, Gra
bowski is given to reminiscing about
her career. At the recently completed
Big Eight Championships, several
coaches wished Grabowski luck with
her future.
"It was really nice of all of (the
coaches). But it made me realize that it
was almost over," Grabowski said. "In a
way I'm sad, but I'm happy. There
comes a time when you have to quit."
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