Anna and Everly Seidel
A Passion for Gymnastics
We are always on the lookout for residents with a passion for what they do. This month Indian Trails residents Anna and Everly Seidel were nominated to be featured for their love of gymnastics. Mom, Melissa, tells us that she loves the life lessons her girls are learning and the habits they are establishing through gymnastics. “I see the girls learning time management skills, practicing goal setting, and working hard for what they want. They are building internal strength and learning to stick to their commitments. Gymnastics can be a team sport but it is really about individual development as well. They know it’s not about comparing themselves to others, but rather striving to improve their own skills to continue to be better tomorrow than they are today.” We caught up with these girls to learn more.
Anna (11) is a fifth-grader at Hillcrest Elementary. Her favorite subject is literacy. She is very happy to be back in school. She missed her friends and tells us that she just gets so much more out of class by being there. Her love of gymnastics began at an early age. Being flexible and extremely active at home, she has always loved tumbling. Her parents enrolled her in her first class at age four and the rest is history.
She is currently a part of the Airforce Academy. She is in the Level 4 Junior Olympic Program and enjoys competing throughout the state. Training includes several hours, three times a week, and optional open gym times on the weekend. Her efforts have paid off as she continues to climb the ladder.
Anna recently moved up to Level 4 after mastering several new skills. She participates in all four areas of the sport: beam, floor, bar, and vault. The bar presents the biggest challenge for her but is also her favorite. Her best memory so far was a competition in Madison, the Dairy-Aire Invitational, where she qualified for state. She set a goal and accomplished it through hard work and training. She looks forward to trying new sports in middle school but would like to continue with gymnastics as well.
Her younger sister, Everly (8), is a third-grader at Hillcrest Elementary. Her favorite subject is Art. She is also glad to be back to in-person learning (but tells us she did really like doing school in her pajamas). Everly’s love of gymnastics grew in part due to her sister’s experience. Everly has always been very active and has also enjoyed tumbling. It made sense for her at age 6 to follow in her sister’s footsteps. She is a natural and has moved up the ladder to a Level 3 Junior Olympic team member at Airforce Academy.
Everly also competes on bar, floor, vault, and beam and has enjoyed early success. Her first meet was in Milwaukee and she placed fifth on the bars and 8th on the beam. She has made some great friends through this sport and tells us that she has great coaches. She also follows a rigorous training schedule and commits to three days a week and some weekends. Everly also plays basketball with the Pulaski Girls' Youth Program and looks forward to trying other sports.
The Seidel sisters enjoy camping and vacationing with family in their spare time. They have recently been out east and are excited to visit their grandparents who recently made the move to Florida. These two girls were tough to pin down but we were glad to have a few moments to capture their story before they tumbled on to their next adventure! We wish them the best!