Deborah Shaw, 9, made this year’s USA Gymnastics TOPs National B-Team and earned the right to train at the Women’s National Team Training Center located at Bela Karolyi’s Ranch in Houston, Texas. Shaw is from River City Gymnastics in Little Rock and trains 21 hours per week. She is the reigning Arkansas State Champion in her division.

Nine-year-old Deborah Shaw has nerves of steel. At least it seems that way to her mother, Stephanie.

The third grader at Collegeville Elementary School has been competing in USA Gymnastics since she was 7. Every year, she has won a State title.But this year was different,” Stephanie Shaw said.

“When Deborah competed at age 7, Level 5 only one other girl her age qualified at her level,” she related. “When she competed at age 8, Level 6, no other girls her age qualified at her level. Deborah won just by qualifying for the state meet. This year, she had competition.”

And she wound up placing first in beam, first in bars and first in the all-around with a third-place finish on the vault and the floor exercise.

“Deborah started this season two steps back,” noted her mother. “She tore her tendon in her knee, which is very rare for a child her age. She spent six weeks in rehab in order to compete by the first meet of the season.

“All through this meet season, Deborah has been competing against a group of the same girls,” she continued. “She has won against them sometimes and they have beaten her sometimes.”

The youngster, a straight A student, competed in the Arkansas USA Gymnastics State Meet on March 20 at the Stephens Center in Little Rock.

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By Kirk Stewart

Pop Warner once said, “You play the way you practice.” Kayla Johnson evidently practices like a state champion.

Kayla has been participating in gymnastics since she was six years old. Last year was her first year to compete in the State. She not only participated, but placed in the top 10 in all the events. This year she entered the Gymnastic State Meet in Pine Bluff on March 27. She placed first on the Balance Beam, second on the Uneven Bars, third on Vault, and fourth on Floor.

After tallying all of the high scores she received in all four events, Kayla, at age 10, placed first in the “All Around” in Level 5 which is stiff competition with other 10 year olds.

Kayla is a student of Davis Elementary in Donna Peters’ fifth grade class and a gymnast at River City Gymnastics.

Kayla and her family are transplants from Hot Springs and have been part of the Bryant community and Davis Elementary for the past 3 years.

Last year, Deborah Shaw of Bryant was the level 5 state champion on beam. Thisyear, as an eight year old, she has won the overall level 6 competition after coming back from a break in her thumb when her brother accidentally fell on it.

The break required surgery and one pin with six weeks in a cast plus two more weeks of recovery before she could return to a full workout schedule.However, in order to compete at the state meet, a certain all-around score must be achieved to qualify.

Deborah had only competed in two meets before she broke her thumb. Fortunately, she had achieved a score high enough to qualify in her first meet. However, the recovery from her surgery left only about two weeks before the state meet.

Out of all the 8 year olds competing in gymnastics in Arkansas, Deborah achieved the highest level placement of all of them, Level 6. So most of her work was done before the State Meet simply by achieving that placement. By the time she got to the State Meet, she had already beaten all of the other 8 year olds in thestate.

Deborah's goal at the state meet was to achieve her highest all-around score of the year. Not only did she achieve that goal, but she scored the third highest all-around score of her whole level 6 team. The only two girls to outscore her on the team were two 12-year-olds.

Deborah won the 8 year old level 6 competition by taking first in all events and the all-around. Her level 6 team took third place. They missed second place by a tenth of a point.

—Stephanie Shaw