The Olympic gold medalist just made history in Minnesota—and she’s one apparatus away from joining the sport’s most exclusive club
Featured image: Photo by Ocoudis, via Wikimedia Commons. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped and text added by GymnasticsVille. This adapted image is shared under the same license, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Jordan Chiles doesn’t just chase perfection. She lives it.
In front of a sold-out crowd of over 5,000 fans at Minnesota’s Maturi Pavilion on Saturday night, the UCLA senior delivered her fourth consecutive perfect 10—this time performing her iconic Prince-themed floor routine in the late icon’s home state. The performance wasn’t just technically flawless. It was a cultural moment.
“There’s a sold-out crowd that literally were giving her a standing ovation,” said UCLA head coach Janelle McDonald. “Prince is so special to Minnesota, and for her to be able to go out and just nail that routine—it was so well received.”
But here’s what makes this streak truly historic: Jordan Chiles is now just ONE perfect score away from achieving the “Gym Slam”—perfect 10s on all four apparatuses. And if she gets it, she’ll become only the 16th gymnast in NCAA history to join this elite club.
The Perfection Streak: How We Got Here
Let’s rewind through four weeks of absolute dominance:
Week 1 (Jan. 17) – The Breakthrough on Vault
Against Nebraska in UCLA’s home opener at Pauley Pavilion, Chiles stuck her Yurchenko double full so cold that she literally collapsed to the floor in tears. After four years of chasing this particular perfect score, she finally got it.
“Honestly words can’t describe how happy I am!!! It took me 4 years to finally get a 10 on vault!!” she wrote on Instagram. “Only going up from here!!! Anything is possible.”
Week 2 (Jan. 25) – Floor Perfection #1
At Michigan State’s Breslin Center, Chiles delivered her seventh career perfect 10 on floor—and the first by any gymnast in the 2026 NCAA season. Her all-around score of 39.875 was the highest in the nation.
Week 3 (Jan. 30) – Floor Perfection #2
Back home at Pauley Pavilion against Washington on Pride Night, Chiles anchored a nation-leading 49.700 floor rotation with another flawless routine. UCLA posted a season-best 198.150.
“I think I’m understanding my body. I am getting older,” Chiles reflected. “It’s more about the presence and the perfectionism that I have to bring—I figured that out finally my senior year.”
Week 4 (Feb. 7) – The Prince Tribute in Minnesota
In what might be the most memorable perfect 10 of her career, Chiles brought back her 2025 Prince routine specifically for the Minneapolis crowd. The cultural significance wasn’t lost on anyone—including Chiles herself.
After the meet, she grabbed a microphone and addressed the crowd directly: “Huge thank you to Minnesota. I know there has been a lot of tough things going on here, and I just want to say we stand with you, and that the Prince routine was meant for you guys.”
The gesture transcended sport. It was leadership. It was empathy. It was Jordan Chiles.
What is a Gym Slam? And Why Does It Matter?
In the five-decade history of NCAA women’s gymnastics, only 15 athletes have ever achieved a Gym Slam—perfect 10s on vault, bars, beam, and floor. Think about that: across thousands of collegiate gymnasts, generations of Olympians, and countless routines, only 15 have reached this pinnacle.
The list includes legends like:
- Trinity Thomas (Florida)
- Maggie Nichols (Oklahoma)
- Kyla Ross (UCLA) – Chiles’ fellow Bruin
Here’s where Chiles stands right now:
- Vault: 1 perfect 10 (Jan. 17, 2026)
- Uneven Bars: 5 career perfect 10s
- Balance Beam: Career-high 9.975 (achingly close!)
- Floor Exercise: 7 career perfect 10s
She’s that close.
The Beam: The Final Frontier
If you’ve been watching Chiles this season, you know the beam 10 isn’t a question of “if”—it’s “when.”
Against Nebraska on January 17, she scored 9.975, with one judge actually giving her a perfect 10. Against Washington on January 30, another 9.975, with coach McDonald noting she “kind of moved her foot a little bit on the dismount.”
“I think it’s coming,” McDonald said confidently. “It’s there. And that’s what I told her after beam today.”
Chiles has posted four scores of 9.950 or higher on beam this season alone. She’s averaging 9.925+ on the apparatus. The stick is coming. The 10 is coming.
And when it does? History.
Why This Season Feels Different
Jordan Chiles has already conquered worlds that most gymnasts only dream about:
- 2024 Paris Olympics: Team gold medalist (and controversial floor bronze)
- 2020 Tokyo Olympics: Team silver medalist
- 2022 World Championships: Team gold, vault and floor silver
- Dancing with the Stars: Third-place finalist (Fall 2025)
- SI Swimsuit cover model (2025)
- Time Magazine’s 2025 Women of the Year honoree
But there’s something about this senior season at UCLA that feels special. Maybe it’s the maturity. Maybe it’s the freedom of knowing this is her victory lap. Maybe it’s the joy of competing without the weight of Olympic pressure.
“It’s allowing myself to realize that gymnastics isn’t something that I have to truly focus on,” Chiles said. “It’s more about the presence and the perfectionism that I have to bring.”
That mindset shift? It’s showing in the scores.
Chiles has won Big Ten Gymnast of the Week for four consecutive weeks (literally every week of the season so far). She’s scored 9.900 or higher on 14 of her 16 routines. She’s currently ranked #1 in the all-around nationally with a 39.650 average.
She’s not just good. She’s operating on a different plane.
The Bruins Are Undefeated in Big Ten Play
While Chiles hunts individual glory, she’s also leading UCLA to team dominance. The Bruins are 8-2 overall and 4-0 in Big Ten Conference play—they haven’t lost a conference meet since joining the Big Ten last season.
The supporting cast is stellar:
- Freshman Ashlee Sullivan is posting career-highs seemingly every week (9.925 on bars against Minnesota)
- Senior Ciena Alipio hasn’t scored below 9.925 on beam all season
- Sophomore Sydney Barros made her collegiate beam debut and immediately posted 9.900
- Freshman Tiana Sumanasekera is a consistent all-arounder averaging 39.375
But make no mistake: this is Chiles’ team. And she’s savoring every moment of her final season.
“Vibes were high from the minute that we were sent off in the hotel throughout the whole meet,” Sullivan said after the Minnesota victory.
What’s Next: The Road to the Gym Slam
UCLA has a loaded schedule ahead, with plenty of opportunities for Chiles to claim that elusive beam 10:
- Feb. 14: vs. Michigan (Valentine’s Day meet at Pauley Pavilion)
- Feb. 21: at Penn State
- Feb. 27: Big Four meet vs. Iowa, Ohio State, Maryland (Pauley Pavilion)
- March 14: Senior Day vs. Utah (Season finale at Pauley Pavilion)
Here’s the thing about Jordan Chiles: pressure makes her better.
She’s the gymnast who helped Team USA win gold in Paris. She’s the performer who delivered on Dancing with the Stars’ biggest stage. She’s the athlete who waited four years for a vault 10 and then proceeded to score three more perfect 10s in the next three weeks.
When the moment arrives—and it will arrive—she’ll be ready.
The Bigger Picture: A Legacy Beyond Scores
What makes this pursuit so compelling isn’t just the numerical achievement. It’s who Jordan Chiles is.
She’s the athlete who took a microphone in Minnesota to tell a community she stands with them during difficult times. She’s the leader who brings joy to every rotation, whose teammates literally perform her floor routine alongside her from the sidelines. She’s the competitor who cried tears of happiness over a vault 10 because she understood the four-year journey it took to get there.
In a sport that often emphasizes robotic perfection, Chiles brings humanity.
And that’s why, when she inevitably sticks that beam dismount and the judges flash those two beautiful digits—1-0—it won’t just be about joining an exclusive club.
It’ll be about a young woman who came back to college gymnastics after Olympic glory, who chose joy over pressure, who led with empathy, and who reminded us all that the pursuit of perfection is most beautiful when it’s genuine.
The Watch Continues
We’ll be tracking every beam routine, every competition, every near-miss and perfect stick as Jordan Chiles chases history.
Follow along all season at GymnasticsVille.com for:
- Real-time meet coverage and score updates
- Exclusive Gym Slam Tracker following Chiles and other contenders
- Video breakdowns of her beam routines
- Expert analysis on what makes her beam work so special
Because when Jordan Chiles makes history—and she will—you’ll want to say you watched it happen.
Current Season Stats (through Feb. 7, 2026):
- All-Around Average: 39.650 (1st nationally)
- Perfect 10s This Season: 4 (1 vault, 3 floor)
- Career Perfect 10s: 15 total
- Big Ten Gymnast of the Week: 4 consecutive weeks
- Team Record: 8-2 (4-0 Big Ten)
Jordan Chiles and UCLA return to action Friday, Feb. 14 against Michigan at Pauley Pavilion. The meet airs live on BTN at 7 PM PT.
Photo Attribution: Featured image by Ocoudis, via Wikimedia Commons. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. The image has been cropped and text has been added. This adapted version is shared under the same license, CC BY-SA 4.0.
