Tag: Washington gymnastics

Washington hires gymnastics coach Jessa Hansen Parker

Washington hired Jessa Hansen Parker, a former teammate of 2008 Olympic gold medalist Shawn Johnson, to lead their gymnastics program.

Washington hired a new gymnastics coach on Tuesday, swiping an assistant from the same school who took the Huskies’ head coach earlier this summer.

Jen Llewellyn left Montlake on June 6 to take the gymnastics coaching job at Iowa, which is also the previous stop of new Huskies coach Jessa Hansen Parker. A Hawkeyes alum, Hansen Parker spent the last four seasons as an assistant coach at Iowa.

In those four seasons, Hansen Parker coached 6 All-Americans, 13 All-Big Ten honorees, and Big Ten Freshman of the Year Adeline Kenlin, who was also the 2022 NCAA runner-up in the balance beam.

“We are thrilled to welcome coach Hansen Parker into the Husky family as the leader of our gymnastics program,” Washington athletic director Pat Chun said in a statement.

“Her passion for coaching and commitment to education is beyond evident and we can’t wait to see her vision unfold here on Montlake. Throughout her career, coach Hansen Parker has shown an amazing amount of energy and focus through leadership and her approach to team building. She brings elite-level experience as a student-athlete and coach at Iowa, as well as a commitment to excellence both athletically and academically, making her the perfect choice to lead our program into a new era within the Big Ten conference.”

Before returning to her alma mater, Hansen Parker spent seven seasons on the west coast as an assistant coach at Cal and UC Davis. At Cal, Hansen Parker helped guide the Golden Bears to their first NCAA national championship berth in 24 years in 2016. Cal finished No. 7 in the nation that year.

While at UC Davis, Hansen Parker was named the 2019 Assistant Coach of the Year by the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.

A two time All-Big Ten selection as a gymnast at Iowa, Hansen Parker was club teammates with 2008 Olympic gold medalist Shawn Johnson at Chow’s Gymnastics in West Des Moines, Iowa. That gym has also produced Olympians Gabby Douglas and Rachel Gowey.

Washington will hope to tap into that talent with Hansen Parker at the helm.

 

Iowa hires Washington gymnastics coach Jen Llewellyn

Washington gymnastics head coach Jen Llewellyn left the Huskies for Iowa on Thursday, per an announcement from the Hawkeyes.

The Iowa Hawkeyes announced Thursday morning that they hired former Washington head gymnastics coach Jen Llewellyn as the fifth coach in the program’s history.

Llewellyn had led the Huskies to three straight second-round regional appearances, including a 2023 appearance in the final sixteen. One gymnast under her tutelage also qualified for the NCAA National Championships in the all-around.

From nearby Kenmore, Washington, Llewellyn was a three-time All-American and the national runner-up on the bars at Oregon State in the late 2000s.

Washington hired Llewellyn from Lindenwood, where she had been since the Lions opened their gymnastics program in 2012. She was named the USA Gymnastics Head Coach of the Year in 2015 and 2016, leading the Lions to six straight conference championships and three USA Gymnastics national championships.

Lindenwood was also the third-ever Division II program selected to NCAA Regionals when the Lions earned a bid in 2019 under Llewellyn, who was named a Division II Regional Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2021.

Washington saw Skylar Killough-Wilhelm earn two All-American honors and Killough-Wilhelm and Emily Innes share the NCAA Regional floor championship in 2024.

Llewellyn’s husband Cody was an assistant coach for the Huskies and has coached with Llewellyn since her time at Lindenwood, which leaves Washington without a clear in-house replacement following her departure.