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 By the age of 12 Sarah DeMeo had already accomplished what many gymnasts only dream of, competing at Jr. International Elite Nationals. As one of the smallest competitors in the Gaylord Entertainment Center, Sarah was easy to spot. But this is just the start of Sarah’s journey.
2004 was a big year for Sarah. Sarah started off the year by competing in Colorado where she qualified as a Child Pre-Elite and went on to competed at the 2004 American Challenge. Sarah did an amazing job at the meet and placed 2nd AA in the compulsory and optional portion of the competition. Sarah was also still competing her level 9 season. She continued to do well and placed first on vault and beam at level 9 Regionals, as well as 2nd in the AA competition. Sarah then went to International Team Training Camp where she scored a 34 AA, qualifying her as a Junior International Elite Gymnast. Sarah finished off her level 9 season by placing 1st AA at Level 9 Westerns and placing 2nd on beam. Sarah’s season didn’t stop there. Sarah was off to New York where she competed in the 2004 US Classic and placed high enough to qualify her to US Nationals. Sarah placed a respectable 18th AA at nationals, but missed qualifying to the national team but just a few places.
Sarah is the oldest child of Susan and Craig DeMeo. She has one younger sister, Allison, who was also involved with gymnastics for a short time. Sarah is a straight A student and has won numerous academic awards. She was runner-up for the Blue Valley Sunflower Award and won the Kansas State Mathematics Award two years in a row. Her favorite academic subjects are math and science, which she will need as a future Crime Scene Investigator or Veterinarian. Sarah admires Carly Patterson for her determination and achievements as a gymnast. In her spare time Sarah does volunteer work including helping with the elderly and helps to teach younger children to read. In 2003 Sarah won the Presidential Volunteer Service Award-Silver Level, which is awarded for those who have served over 100 hours in their community. Sarah also enjoys drawing, scrap booking, crocheting, and spending time with her friends. |
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Sarah DeMeo was born on January 29, 1992 and was soon in the gym learning flips, turns, and twists. Sarah started her career at Diamond Gymnastics in Overland Park, Kansas, at age 6. Soon Sarah’s talent was noticed and Sarah began her quick climb up the gymnastics ladder. By 2002 Sarah was already competing as a level 8 gymnast. At Region III Championships she did very well winning vault, bars, beam, and the AA competition. Sarah went on to compete level 9 in 2003 where she placed 2nd AA at Regionals and 7th AA at level 9 Westerns. Sarah also did well that year and was placed on the 2003 TOPs Nationals team and was the National TOPs Silver Award Winner.
Shortly after the 2004 season, Sarah was forced to make a hard decision. Her long time coaches from Diamond Gymnastics would be moving to Oklahoma, and Sarah would need to find a new place to train. Although the decision was a tough one, the DeMeo family decided that Great American Gymnastics Express (GAGE) would be a good place for Sarah to continue on the Elite path. Sarah is now training at GAGE where she is training hard for the 2005 season with Olympic Coaches Al and Armine Fong. Sarah started off the 2005 season strong by placing well in two level 10 invitational and once again gained her International Elite status.
Sarah competed at the 2005 US Classic in Virginia Beach in July, and once again did very well placing 13th AA and qualifying to US Nationals for the 2nd time! Sarah arrived in Indianapolis ready to shine at Nationals and did just that. With many of her family in the stands cheering her on Sarah improved her combined AA by over 2 1/2 points and placed 12th AA qualifying her to the 2005-2006 National Team! Sarah attended many National Team Training Camps throughout the 2006 year and was also picked to compete at the USA v. Japan & New Zealand competition.
Sarah competed all-around as an exhibition athlete at USA v. Japan/New Zealand, doing well in her first competition under the new code. Sarah did well enough to qualify straight to US National Championships that would be held in August. Sarah competed at the 2006 Manhattan Classic in New York City, but unfortunately had an injury at the meet. Sarah hurt her back and was forced to water down her routines that she competed at the 2006 Dragon Invitational that February. Sarah competed in the 2006 US Classic in July where she placed 6th All-Around in a very tough field of competitors and also won the beam competition. Sarah went on to compete at Nationals in St. Paul where She placed 7th over-all, high enough to qualify to her 2nd National Team.
Sarah received an international assignment in early 2007 and she traveled to Houston to compete in the USA v. The World competition. Sarah did well placing 5th on beam and 8th all-around. Sarah was also assigned to compete in the Gymnix International Competition in Montreal, Canada. Sarah placed 4th all-around in the junior portion of the competition and qualified to all four event finals. Sarah went on to place 3rd on vault, 2nd on beam, and 1st on floor! Sarah skipped the US Classic since she qualified to US Nationals based on her performance at the Gymnix competition. Sarah traveled to San Jose, CA to compete in her fourth US Championships where she qualified for her third USA National Team. Sarah has a chance for more international assignments before she begins her Senior year of competition next year.