Shallon Olsen facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Shallon Olsen
Olsen in July 2021
Personal information
Full name	Shallon Jade Olsen
Country represented	Canada
Born	(2000-07-10) 10 July 2000 (age 24) Vancouver, British Columbia
Hometown	Surrey, British Columbia
Residence	Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Height	158 cm (5 ft 2 in)
Discipline	Women's artistic gymnastics
Level	Senior International Elite
Years on national team	2012 – present (CAN)
Club	Flicka Gymnastics
College team	Alabama Crimson Tide
Head coach(es)	Dorina Stan (elite) Dana Duckworth (NCAA)
Medal record Women's artistic gymnastics Representing  Canada World Championships Silver 2018 Doha Vault Bronze 2022 Liverpool Team Commonwealth Games Gold 2018 Gold Coast Team Gold 2018 Gold Coast Vault Bronze 2018 Gold Coast Floor exercise Pan American Games Silver 2019 Lima Team Bronze 2019 Lima Vault Pan American Championships Bronze 2022 Rio de Janeiro Team Pacific Rim Championships Gold 2016 Everett Vault Silver 2016 Everett Team Bronze 2016 Everett Floor exercise FIG World Cup Event 1st 2nd 3rd World Challenge Cup 0 2 0

Shallon Jade Olsen (born on July 10, 2000) is a Canadian artistic gymnast. She is known for her amazing skills on the vault. In 2018, she won a silver medal at the World Championships and a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games. She also earned a bronze medal in the floor exercise at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and a vault bronze at the 2019 Pan American Games.

Shallon was part of the Canadian team that won gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and silver at the 2019 Pan American Games. She also won gold on vault at the 2016 Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships, along with team silver and floor exercise bronze. Shallon represented Canada at both the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games. She was the youngest Canadian Olympian in 2016. She also competes for the University of Alabama gymnastics team, helping them win the 2021 SEC Championships.

Shallon's Early Life and Training

Shallon Olsen was born in Vancouver on July 10, 2000. Her parents are Tony Olsen and Jayne Chow-Olsen. She has an older brother named Chas. Shallon's mother was born in Hong Kong and moved to Canada in 1966. Shallon started gymnastics when she was just three years old. She went to Centennial Secondary in Coquitlam, British Columbia, which was close to her hometown of Surrey. This allowed her to train six days a week at Omega Gymnastics.

Starting Her Gymnastics Journey: Novice Years

Shallon first competed at the elite level in 2009 at Elite Canada. She finished fifth in the all-around in the novice division. She also won a bronze medal on the floor exercise. In 2010, she won the gold medal in the all-around at Elite Canada. She also earned a silver medal at the Novice Canadian Championships.

At the 2011 Canada Winter Games in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Shallon won a silver medal with the British Columbia team. She also won a bronze medal on the balance beam and a gold medal on the floor exercise. At the 2011 Novice Canadian Championships, she won gold in the all-around and on vault. She also took home silver medals on the uneven bars, balance beam, and floor exercise.

Rising Through the Ranks: Junior Career

2012: Junior Debut and First International Competition

In 2012, Shallon moved up to the junior level. She won the gold medal in the all-around at Elite Canada. In the event finals, she won gold on vault and floor exercise. She also tied for silver on the uneven bars. Shallon won the all-around gold medal at the Canadian Gymnastics Championship in Regina, Saskatchewan. She made her international debut at the Élite Gym Massilia in November. There, she won gold with her team and silver in the all-around.

2013: Defending Titles and Awards

Shallon started 2013 by winning the Elite Canada all-around title again. She also won gold on vault and silver on floor exercise. She competed at the International Gymnix, winning gold on vault. In May, she competed at the Canadian Championships. She won gold in the all-around, vault, and floor exercise. Shallon was honored with the Kate Richardson Outstanding Female Athlete of the Year award by Gymnastics British Columbia.

2014: Team Success and Many Medals

In February, Shallon won gold on vault and floor at Elite Canada. She also earned silver in the all-around, uneven bars, and balance beam. At the International Gymnix, she won gold on vault and silver with her team. She also took home bronze in the all-around. She then traveled to Aracaju, Brazil for the Junior Pan American Championships. There, she won team gold with her Canadian teammates. Shallon also won a silver medal on the vault.

At the Pacific Championships in Richmond, she helped Team Canada win a silver medal. Individually, Shallon won a bronze medal on vault and a silver medal on floor exercise. In May, she competed at the Canadian National Championships. She won vault gold, and silver medals in the all-around, uneven bars, and balance beam.

Becoming a Senior Gymnast: Senior Career Highlights

2016: Olympic Debut and Pacific Rim Gold

Shallon made her senior debut at Elite Canada in February. She won the vault title there. She then competed at the WOGA Classic in Frisco, Texas, winning gold on vault and floor exercise. In March, she won gold on vault and bronze on floor at the International Gymnix. In April, she competed at the Pacific Rim Championships in Everett, Washington. She won vault gold, team silver, and floor exercise bronze. At the Canadian Championships, she won vault gold and floor exercise silver.

Shallon was chosen for the Canadian Olympic team in June. She was the youngest athlete on Team Canada. At the Olympic qualification round, Canada finished ninth. Shallon qualified for the vault final in sixth place. She finished eighth in the final.

2017: World Championships and University Commitment

In February, Shallon won gold on vault at Elite Canada. She was then chosen to compete at the International Gymnix and the City of Jesolo Trophy. She won vault at both competitions. Later that year, at the Canadian Championships, she won her seventh national vault title in a row. She was named to Canada's World Championship team. Before the World Championships, she won two silver medals at the Varna World Cup. At the World Championships in Montreal, she qualified for the vault final in fourth place. She finished seventh in the final. After the competition, she announced her commitment to the University of Alabama’s gymnastics team.

2018: Commonwealth Gold and World Silver Medal

Shallon started 2018 by winning gold on vault at Elite Canada. She also won gold on vault at the International Gymnix. She was chosen for the Canadian team for the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia. Shallon helped the Canadian team win the gold medal. She qualified first into the vault final and third into the floor final. In the vault final, she won the gold medal. Then, in the floor exercise final, she won the bronze medal. At the Canadian Championships, she won gold medals on both vault and floor exercise.

Shallon was named to Canada's World Championships team. The team placed fourth, which was Canada's highest finish ever at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. In the vault final, Shallon won the silver medal, right behind Simone Biles. This was the first time a Canadian woman won a medal on vault at the World Championships.

2019: Pan American Medals and Olympic Qualification

In May, Shallon competed at the Canadian National Championships, winning gold on vault. In June, she was named to the team for the 2019 Pan American Games. The team won the silver medal. During the vault final, Shallon won the bronze medal. She was then named to the team for the World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany. During qualifications, Shallon helped Canada place fifth. This meant Canada qualified a team for the 2020 Olympic Games. The team finished seventh in the team final. In the vault final, she finished in fourth place.

2020–2021: Competing Through Challenges and Another Olympics

Shallon competed at Elite Canada in 2020, finishing first on vault. She returned to competition in 2021 for Olympic team selection. At the Canadian Championships, she won gold on the vault. On June 17, Shallon was officially named to Canada's 2020 Olympic team. During the qualification round, the Canadian team placed tenth. Shallon qualified for the vault final in sixth place. In the vault final, she finished seventh.

2022: Historic World Championships Team Medal

In July, Shallon competed at the Pan American Championships. The team finished third, winning a bronze medal. Individually, Shallon placed fifth on vault. In late October, Shallon was set to compete at the World Championships in Liverpool. However, due to the sudden death of her mother, she was unable to compete. Even though Shallon was not there, she was still officially part of the Canadian team as the alternate. During the team final, the Canadian team won a historic bronze medal. This was their first team medal ever at the World Championships. As the alternate, Shallon was also awarded the team medal.

2024: Third Olympic Games Appearance

In late June, Shallon was named to the team to represent Canada at the 2024 Summer Olympics. At the 2024 Olympic Games, Shallon helped Canada qualify for the team final. The team finished fifth. Individually, she qualified for the vault final, where she finished eighth.

Shallon's NCAA College Gymnastics Career

Shallon joined the Alabama Crimson Tide women's gymnastics team in the fall of 2018. She made her college gymnastics debut at Alabama on January 5, 2019. She won the vault title in her first meet. At the Southeastern Conference Championships, Shallon helped Alabama finish third. She also received honors for her performance on the balance beam. She was named Alabama Gymnastics Rookie of the Year for 2019. During the 2020 season, Shallon competed in every meet before the season ended early due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At the 2021 SEC Championships, Shallon helped Alabama win the team title. This was the school's first SEC title since 2015. Shallon has also been recognized for her academic achievements.

Shallon's Personal Life and Hobbies

Shallon studies communications at the University of Alabama. When she's not training or studying, she enjoys reading. She also likes doing word searches, baking, biking, and going to the movies.

Competitive history

Year	Event	Team	AA	VT	UB	BB	FX
Novice
2009	Elite Canada		5	5	4
2010	Elite Canada
	Novice National Championships				8
2011	Canada Games		5
	Novice National Championships
Junior
2012	Elite Canada					8
	Canadian Championships
	Élite Gym Massilia
2013	Elite Canada				6	4
	International Gymnix		10
	Canadian Championships				4	5
	Élite Gym Massilia	5	13	4
2014	Elite Canada
	International Gymnix					7
	Junior Pan American Championships						4
	Pacific Rim Championships		6		6
	Canadian Championships
	Élite Gym Massilia	5	11
2015	Elite Canada		6			8
	Canada Games					4
	International Gymnix		8
	City of Jesolo Trophy		10
	Canadian Championships		6
Senior
2016	Elite Canada		14
	WOGA Classic
	International Gymnix	4	12
	Pacific Rim Championships		4			7
	Canadian Championships		4		9	11
	Olympic Games	9		8
2017	Elite Canada		6		5		7
	City of Jesolo Trophy	6	20				7
	Canadian Championships		6		8	13	8
	Varna Challenge Cup
	World Championships			7
2018	Elite Canada		6			6
	International Gymnix		5			9	4
	Commonwealth Games
	Canadian Championships					11
	World Championships	4
2019	Canadian Championships					5	4
	Pan American Games
	World Championships	7		4
2021	Canadian Championships		11		21	22	11
	Olympic Games	10		7
2022
	Pan American Championships			5
	World Championships
2023	RomGym Trophy					8	6
2024	DTB Pokal Team Challenge	4
	City of Jesolo Trophy	4
	Olympic Games	5		8
NCAA
2019	SEC Championships			10		6
2021	SEC Championships			4
	NCAA Championships			5		30	34

See also

In Spanish: Shallon Olsen para niños