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Trinity Thomas has transitioned from the competition floor to a new role as a student assistant coach of the Florida Gators gymnastics team. She expressed gratitude to her alma mater to bestow the opportunity and to head coach Jenny Ester Rowland for helping her grow.
Thomas, 23, won three medals at the 2018 Pan American Championships, the team gold and silver podiums in the all-around and uneven bars. Although her elite career has a short list of medals, her NCAA career was one of the most successful in gymnastic history. As part of the Florida Gators gymnastics team, representing the University of Florida, Thomas earned five record-breaking gym slams and 28 perfect 10s.
Her 28th perfect score came from the vault routine she executed at the 2023 NCAA Gymnastics Finals. She also became the only gymnast to earn a perfect score at least five times on each apparatus and the only Gator to open the 2022-23 season with a perfect 10. She was awarded consecutive Honda Sports Awards as the best female college gymnast, in 2022 and 2023.
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After ending her stellar college career, Thomas now returned to her alma mater as an assistant coach for the girls' gymnastics team. Taking to her Instagram account, she shared a note of gratitude for the role on the Gators' coaching staff:
"Forever grateful for the opportunity to be a Student Coach for the Gators Gymnastics Team @gatorsgym."
She added:
"I absolutely adore these girls, the coaching staff, and of course, being a Gator. I will cherish all the lessons this role has taught me about leadership, passion, and overcoming adversity."
Thomas also expressed gratitude to Jenny Esther Rowland, the head coach of the Gators team, who helped her grow as a professional.
"A special thank you to @jenny_a_rowland for continuing to help me learn and grow as a person and as a professional. As always, Go Gators"
Trinity Thomas - "I got the opportunity to come back to elite gymnastics"
Trinity Thomas missed out on participating in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and announced her retirement since her ankle injuries were posing roadblocks. In July 2023, she wished to go for another Olympic run in Paris and made a return to the elite mat at the 2024 Winter Cup. In the event, she clinched second on the uneven bars and fourth in the all-around competition.
In an interview, Thomas shared that making the Olympic team has always been her dream.
"There is one more dream that I've always had and it's been cut short a couple of times, and I'm glad that I got the opportunity to come back to elite gymnastics with my eyes set on Paris 2024. My goal has always been to be able to compete at the Olympic trials and grab a spot on the Olympic team," she said (via Inside Gymnastics).
Thomas amassed a total of six NCAA medals across her career. She would look to impart a great deal of knowledge to the student-athletes she will coach.
