The NCAA women's gymnastics championships are an annual gymnastics competition to determine the best collegiate women's gymnastics team in the country. Unlike most

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

sports, the women's gymnastics championship is not separated into divisions and uses a single

National Collegiate The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges a ...

championship instead.

History

The NCAA introduced women's

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...

as a championship sport in

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C ...

. Gymnastics was one of twelve women's sports added to the NCAA championship program for the 1981–82 school year, as the NCAA engaged in battle with the

Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) was founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics in the United States and to administer national championships (see AIAW Champions). It evolved out of the Commission on Interc ...

for sole governance of women's collegiate sports. The AIAW continued to conduct its established championship program in the same twelve (and other) sports; however, after a year of dual women's championships, the NCAA conquered the AIAW and usurped its authority and membership. Under the NCAA, only seven universities have claimed the overall Division I (pre-1987) or

(1987–present) championship; the Division II competition was discontinued in 1987. During the early years of competition, the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

, under the leadership of head coach

Greg Marsden Greg Marsden (November 8, 1950) was the NCAA women's gymnastics coach at the University of Utah. He led the Utah Red Rocks to 10 national titles and was named National Coach of the Year 7 times. He also served as the U.S.A. National Women's Team ...

, dominated the field of competition. During the late 1980s and 1990s, the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

(UGA), coached by

Suzanne Yoculan Suzanne Paige Yoculan was the head coach of the women's gymnastics program at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia from 1983 to 2009. During her tenure, she built the Georgia gymnastics program into a national powerhouse and is one of the ...

, and the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publ ...

, coached by Sarah Patterson, gained success and claimed several titles. From 1996 to 2012, the

, the

, and

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

, coached by Valorie Kondos Field, claimed all NCAA titles; four titles for the

, seven for

and seven for the

. In 2013, the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

, coached by Rhonda Faehn, broke the reign of the prior four teams, winning the NCAA Championships held at

's newly renovated Pauley Pavilion in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. Faehn was a competitor for the Bruins 1990–1992. The

University of Oklahoma , mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State" , type = Public research university , established = , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.7billion (2021) , pr ...

, coached by K. J. Kindler, became the sixth team to win the NCAA title after tying with Florida in 2014. In 2021, the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, coached by Bev Plocki, became the seventh team to win the NCAA title.

Team titles

Team champions

Individual champions

Gymnasts who have won individual titles on 4 or more events

Total individual champions by school

Gym Slam

A ''Gym Slam'' (sometimes spelled as ''GymSlam'') is the accomplishment of scoring a perfect 10.0 on each apparatus. Only 12 women in NCAA gymnastics have achieved this feat, 3 have achieved it twice and Trinity Thomas is the only gymnast to have achieved this feat 3 times.

References

External links

NCAA women's gymnastics homepage

Women's Gymnastics Championship Records Through 2014

Division II Women's Gymnastics Championship Records 1982–86
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ncaa Women's Gymnastics Championship