Ray-Statz Brings Olympic Skills, Experience To UW Gymnastics
February 07, 2018 | Gymnastics
Before Elise Ray-Statz's coaching career began in Seattle, she was a high-level Olympic gymnast. Not only did she make a name for herself by earning a bronze medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and being a three-time NCAA National Champion, she cemented her legacy further by creating skills still used today.
Ray-Statz had a prolific career. She competed in the 1999 World Championships in Tianjin, China, and in 2000, she won both the U.S. National Championships and the Olympic Trials. She was the only American to qualify for an event final in the Olympics and was part of the team that won bronze.
At Michigan, she led her team to the NCAA Super Six finals and was a three-time NCAA National Champion on the bars (2004), the beam (2002) and tied for the all-around title in 2001. When she graduated, she had the most All-America honors in program history with 14. After all of these accolades, she was inducted into Michigan's Hall of Fame in 2015.
Part of Ray-Statz's success came on the uneven bars where she created three skills that are still used today. The Ray 1 is a transition skill, starting on the low bar, facing the high bar. The Ray 2 is a few flips on the higher bar. Finally, the Ray 3 is her dismount, a double layout dismount with two full twists.
To create a skill, a gymnast must compete the skill at a world championship or at the Olympic Games. Ray-Statz competed all three of her skills at the 2000 Olympics. Her skills came about through the help of her coach, Kelli Hill, and years of progress.
"As you progress as a gymnast, you learn more and more, but all the skills you learn are based on the fundamentals," Ray-Statz said. "I could do the base skills of each of the skills we eventually created and my coach and I just progressed form there. It takes a lot of time and a lot of bravery and trust in your coach. My coach was the best!"
Today, the three Ray skills are used in competition by elite gymnasts, or those gymnasts training for or competing in the Olympics.
"My skills are still done today, which is so incredible," Ray-Statz said. "They are still, to this day, quite difficult and listed as so in the code of points."
One UW gymnast, Madison Copiak, does one of the Ray skills. The sophomore earned her career high on the bars with a score of 9.900 at Elevate the Stage in Reno, Nev., this season.
"She does it in a piked position and I did it in a straddle position, but it's essentially the same skill," Ray-Statz said. "She's the only one that does a Ray."
Β Though Copiak is the only current Dawg who uses one of the Ray skills, many of the gymnasts on the team have tried it. Evanni Roberson worked on the skills for a few years. She grew to appreciate their difficulty and what Ray-Statz can bring to the Washington gymnastics program.
"Her skills are really hard and really scary," Roberson said. "Her Olympic experience and her experience being a collegiate gymnast helps us a lot because as she's coaching, it's easier for her to put herself in our shoes."
Sophomore Maya Washington also understands how tough the skills are and that her head coach can share her knowledge with the team.
"Not a lot of people do her skills because they are very difficult," Washington said. "It just goes to show that she created some very high difficulty skills. It's great to have her here because she's gone through similar experiences so she can understand us better."
With years of experience behind her and the love of her staff and athletes, Ray-Statz is sure to continue to build her legacy.
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