Jan. 3, 2025 4 AM PT
Jordan Chiles’ music wouldn’t start.
Despite attempts to play the track over the Yates Gym speakers at the John Wooden Center, the Billboard Top 100 hits that often serenade UCLA gymnastics floor routines failed to fill the room. The 23-year-old sprawled out on the floor like a snow angel in response. Minutes earlier, she strutted to her teammates’ choreography. She gazed at the gym’s mirror, adjusting the bun attached to her bob atop her head, readying her routine. And now, for a gymnast openly outspoken and energetic, there was silence.