Chellsie Memmel

In April 2020, Memmel began a more structured training after posting a video on social media of herself performing her double pike beam dismount with a message saying “the seed has been planted.” It has not yet been confirmed as to whether Memmel has committed to making a comeback as an elite gymnast, since the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo have been postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 crisis.

Memmel married Kory Maier, a mechanical engineer, in August 2013. They have two children: a son born in August 2014 and a daughter born in November 2017.

Memmel underwent a second surgery on her shoulder in February and resumed training shortly thereafter to try to make the 2012 Olympics team. She competed only on balance beam at the U.S. Classic, and fell twice, scoring an 11.95. The selection committee declined her petition to compete at the National Championships.

On November 14, 2012, Memmel announced her retirement from gymnastics.

On July 23, 2011, Memmel returned to competition at the U.S. Classic in Chicago, where she won the silver medal in the all-around with a total score of 56.95. She placed fourth on floor (13.65) and fifth on balance beam (14.7), and tied with Bridgette Caquatto for fifth on vault (14.2).

She made her all-around comeback at the Good Luck Beijing International Invitational, a test meet for the 2008 Olympic Games in which the gymnasts competed in the same arena and on the same equipment that would be used at the Olympics. Memmel placed fifth in the all-around and third on beam, where she performed new skills, including a front aerial to prone mount. She did not qualify to the uneven bars final.

In June 2008, Memmel placed third in the all-around at the National Championships, behind Liukin and Shawn Johnson. She competed a new, upgraded floor routine that included the Dos Santos skill she had competed in earlier years.

On August 3, 2008, USA Gymnastics announced that Memmel had suffered a minor ankle injury during training in Beijing and would compete only on the uneven bars. She fell in the preliminary round but performed a clean routine in the team finals. Later, it was revealed that she had competed on a broken ankle, a more serious injury than previously disclosed.

Memmel was still recovering from her shoulder injury in August 2007, when the National Championships were held. She competed only on floor exercise on the first day of the competition, and did not compete at the 2007 World Championships.

Memmel began 2006 at the Pacific Alliance Championships, where she tied with Liukin in the all-around. She injured her shoulder while training an overshoot at the competition, and decided not to attend the U.S. Classic. Two weeks later, she competed watered-down routines at the National Championships, where she placed fourth in the all-around.

At the U.S. Olympic Trials, held two weeks after Nationals, she performed well on bars and beam, received a standing ovation for her floor routine on the second night of competition, and was named to the Olympic team selection camp at the Karolyi Ranch in New Waverly, Texas. At the camp, despite giving herself whiplash and having to stop in the middle of her floor routine, she competed on beam later the same day. On the final day of the selection camp, she landed a double-twisting Yurchenko vault for the first time in competition since 2006. She was named to the Olympic team along with Johnson, Liukin, Samantha Peszek, Sacramone, and Bridget Sloan.

Memmel began the 2005 season at the American Cup, which did not have an all-around competition that year. She won the uneven bars title and placed third on beam.

Memmel was named to the 2005 World Championships team, along with Liukin, Alicia Sacramone, and Jana Bieger. At Worlds, she won the all-around title by 0.001 over Liukin. This made her the third American woman, and the first since 1994, to win the all-around at the World Championships. She also won silver medals on balance beam and uneven bars.

After her success at the 2005 Worlds, Memmel decided to turn professional, thereby giving up her NCAA eligibility.

Memmel performed the following skills in competition (difficulty values from the 2005–08 Code of Points)

Double-twisting Yurchenko (2005–06; 5.8 difficulty); 1.5-twisting Yurchenko (2003, 2007–09; 5.5 difficulty); full-twisting Yurchenko (2011; 5.0 difficulty)

In 2004, Memmel competed at the American Cup and placed third, behind U.S. teammates Carly Patterson and Courtney McCool. During a national team training camp in April, she broke a metatarsal bone in her foot while training a piked Barani on balance beam, and she was unable to compete at the National Championships or the Olympic Trials.

She petitioned for a chance to compete at the Olympic team selection camp and was ultimately named as an alternate to the U.S. team for the 2004 Olympics.

Later in the year, Memmel won the uneven bars title at the 2004 World Cup Final.

Memmel became a senior international elite gymnast in 2003. She placed third at the National Podium Meet and the American Classic, and was invited to compete at the Pacific Challenge, a three-country tournament with Canada and Australia. At that competition, she won the all-around.

At the 2003 U.S. National Championships, Memmel was coming off of a hamstring injury that had limited her training time. She made mistakes during her floor exercise routine and placed tenth in the all-around. At a national team selection camp several weeks later, she was chosen to compete at the Pan American Games, but not at the World Championships.

She took part in two Worlds selection camps at the Karolyi Ranch, but, as in 2003, she was named to the Pan American Games team instead of the World Championships team. She subsequently withdrew from the Pan American Games team to continue rehabilitating her injured shoulder. Soon after her return from the second selection camp, she underwent surgery to repair a torn biceps tendon near her right shoulder.

She began competing at the junior elite level in 2000.

Chellsie Marie Memmel (born June 23, 1988) is a retired American artistic gymnast. She is the 2005 world all-around champion (the third American woman, after Kim Zmeskal and Shannon Miller, to win that title) and the 2003 world champion on the uneven bars. She was a member of the United States women's gymnastics team at the 2008 Olympics.