Jacob William Dalton (born August 19, 1991) is a retired American

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

who was a member of the Oklahoma Sooners men's gymnastics team and the

United States men's national artistic gymnastics team The United States men's artistic gymnastics team represents the United States in Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique, FIG international competitions. History The first national team roster was established in 1998. The team has competed at ...

. He represented the United States at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

in London and

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

in Rio de Janeiro.

Early life and education

Dalton was born August 19, 1991, in

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...

, to Tim and Denise Dalton. He grew up in

Sparks, Nevada Sparks is a city in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. It was founded in 1904, incorporated on March 15, 1905, and is located just east of Reno, Nevada, Reno. The 2020 U.S. Census counted 108,445 residents in the city. It is the List of citi ...

and attended Spanish Springs High School. Dailton trained at Gym Nevada under Wanda Fredericks and Andrew Pileggi. After graduating, he received an

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

scholarship to compete for the University of Oklahoma in 2009 where he earned

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors and won the NCAA men's gymnastics floor and vault titles in 2011.

Gymnastics career

Dalton was the U.S. National vault champion in 2009 and 2011, the floor champion in 2011, and the All-Around Gold medalist of the Winter Cup Challenge in 2011. Dalton was a member of the USA team that won the bronze medal in the

2011 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships The 2011 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships were held in Tokyo, Japan, from October 7–16, 2011, at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium. Due to uncertainty over the nuclear situation following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, the Féd� ...

in Tokyo, Japan. In February 2013, Dalton competed at the 2013 Winter Cup and won gold on the floor, rings, and all-around. In August 2013, he won the bronze medal at the P&G National Championships en route to making the World Championships team. He went on to win a silver medal in the floor exercise at 2013 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships behind 17-year-old newcomer Kenzo Shirai of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. In 2015, Dalton was still recovering from a small shoulder labrum tear and did not compete in the P&G National Championships.

2012 & 2016 Summer Olympics

It was announced on July 1, 2012, that Dalton would be a member of the 2012 Olympic team representing the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' stated that the team roster was "considered so good that it could be the first United States men's team to win gold since the 1984 Los Angeles Games." Dalton, as part of the United States Gymnastics team, placed fifth in the team competition in the

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. On June 25, 2016, Dalton was once again named to the five-man United States men's gymnastics team for the Olympics. He represented the United States at the

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

alongside Sam Mikulak, John Orozco (who was later substituted with Danell Leyva due to injury), Alex Naddour, and Chris Brooks. Dalton placed second in vault at the 2016 Gymnastics Olympic Test Event.

2017: Retirement

On August 9, 2017, news surfaced that Dalton was retiring from competitive gymnastics.

Personal life

In 2013, Dalton signed a multi-year sponsorship agreement with

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...

Gymnastics. Mesomorphic was a clothing brand founded in 2012 by Jake Dalton and fulfilled by Stars and Stripes Chicago.

Eponymous skills

Dalton has one named element on the parallel bars.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dalton, Jacob 1991 births Living people American male artistic gymnasts Medalists at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships Oklahoma Sooners men's gymnasts Gymnasts at the 2012 Summer Olympics Gymnasts at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic gymnasts for the United States Originators of elements in artistic gymnastics 21st-century American sportsmen