Sophina DeJesus facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Sophina DeJesus |
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| Full name | Sophina Saadé DeJesus | ||||||||||
| Nickname(s) | Soph, Sophina the Diva | ||||||||||
| Country represented |  United States |
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| Born | October 6, 1994 San Jose, California |
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| Hometown | Temecula, California | ||||||||||
| Residence | Los Angeles, California | ||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 0 in (152 cm) | ||||||||||
| Discipline | Women's artistic gymnastics | ||||||||||
| Years on national team | 2009 (USA) | ||||||||||
| Club | SCEGA | ||||||||||
| College team | UCLA Bruins (2013–16) |
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| Head coach(es) | Valorie Kondos Field | ||||||||||
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Medal record
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| Last updated on: February 15, 2016. | |||||||||||
Sophina Saade DeJesus was born on October 6, 1994, in San Jose, California. She is an American gymnast and dancer. Sophina has a mixed background, with Puerto Rican and African-American heritage. She was a top-level gymnast and was part of the UCLA Bruins gymnastics team from 2012 until she graduated in 2016.
Sophina's Early Life and Career
Growing Up and Starting Gymnastics
Sophina DeJesus was born in San Jose, California. Her parents are Geraldo 'Jerry' and Maria DeJesus. Her mother is African-American, and her father is of Puerto Rican descent.
Sophina started gymnastics when she was 6 years old. She trained at Fallbrook Gymnastics in Fallbrook, California. In 2003, she moved to the Southern California Gymnastics Academy (SCEGA) in Temecula, California. There, she was coached by Kathy Strate, Luis Garcia, and Meredith Paulicivic.
Sophina's Dance and TV Appearances
Before focusing mainly on gymnastics, Sophina was also a talented dancer. She was part of a hip hop group called Mix 5. With this group, she competed in the World Hip Hop International competitions in 2005 and 2006.
In 2005, Sophina was in a TV ad for Go-Gurt yogurt. The next year, in 2006, Sophina and her sister, Savannah, were on the Discovery Kids show Hip Hop Harry. She appeared in four episodes of the show. Sophina also performed in a show called Bayou Legend by Debbie Allen in 2006. She has also appeared on famous TV shows like The Ellen DeGeneres Show and The Tom Joyner Morning Show.
Gymnastics Achievements: Level 8 and 9
In 2005, as a Level 8 gymnast, Sophina won both State and Regional titles for her age group. She won nine out of ten possible individual awards at these competitions.
In 2006, she moved up to Level 9. She placed fifth in the all-around at the State championships. She then finished third at Regionals. Because of her strong performance at Regionals, she went to the Level 9 Western Championships in Colorado Springs, Colorado. There, she tied for fourth place in the all-around.
Moving to Level 10 and Elite Status
After the 2006 season, Sophina changed gyms to SCATS Diamond Elite Gymnastics. In 2007, she became a Level 10 gymnast and was the State champion. She did well at Regionals but finished tenth in the all-around, so she didn't go to Nationals.
She then moved to Precision Gymnastics. In July 2007, Sophina competed at the National Elite Qualifier. She qualified for the U.S. Challenge in Battle Creek, Michigan. She finished second in the all-around at this event.
Focusing on Elite Gymnastics
Becoming a Junior International Elite
In March 2008, Sophina won the all-around title at the Heart of a Champion Invitational as a Level 10 gymnast. She then earned the title of Junior International Elite. This allowed her to compete at the 2008 U.S. Classic in Houston, Texas. She finished seventeenth in the all-around. In June, she placed fourteenth in the all-around at the U.S. National Championships.
Joining the Junior National Team
In 2009, Sophina competed at the American Classic. She placed third on the uneven bars and fifth in the all-around. This meant she could compete at the U.S. Nationals again. There, she finished ninth in the all-around and on beam, and fourth on bars.
After these results, Sophina was chosen for the Junior National Team. She represented the U.S. at the Junior Japan International competition. At this event, she won a gold medal on the floor exercise and finished fourth in the all-around.
High School and College Gymnastics
Sophina became a senior elite gymnast in 2010. By 2012, she decided to return to Level 10 gymnastics. In 2012, she won the uneven bars title at the SCECGA California Classic.
She attended Temecula Valley High School from 2009 to 2012. While in high school, she helped create dance routines for the school's dance teams.
In 2013, Sophina began competing for the UCLA Bruins gymnastics team. During her time in college, she was recognized three times as an All-American on the uneven bars. In 2016, her amazing floor routine became very popular online. Because of her viral routine, Sophina was invited to perform on The Ellen DeGeneres Show for the second time in February 2016.
