SALT LAKE CITY — MyKayla Skinner is headed back to Utah.
Or at least she is still planning on a return come fall.
That is the latest from the University of Utah star — arguably the greatest gymnast in program history — who is currently training in her hometown of Gilbert, Arizona, with an eye on qualifying for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan.
“That is the plan for now, yes.” — MyKayla Skinner on whether she will return to Utah for one final season of college gymnastics
As part of her quest to qualify for the Olympic Games, Skinner created a YouTube channel, entitled MyKayla Skinner: Road to Tokyo, its purpose being to “document my journey and give you all insight into the life of someone preparing for the Olympics!,” she writes.
Over the last month or so, Skinner has afforded fans a glimpse into her life, both in the gym and away from it, tackling topics such as mental training for gymnasts and all athletes, changes made with USA gymnastics and more.
The latest episode, released Tuesday evening, was of the question and answer variety.
Skinner, and husband Jonas Harmer, fielded a variety of queries from fans. One of those was, ‘Will you go back to collegiate level gymnastics after Tokyo?’
At least for now, the answer is yes.
“That is the plan for now, yes,” she said, while Harmer chimed in, “maybe, we’ll see.”
There remains the possibility that the Olympics could be canceled or postponed, yet another sports-related casualty of COVID-19.
The International Olympic Committee remains fully committed to the games at this point, though.
“The IOC remains fully committed to the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020,” a communique released Tuesday, reads. “With more than four months to go before the Games there is no need for any drastic decisions at this stage; and any speculation at this moment would be counter-productive.
The IOC encourages all athletes to continue to prepare for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 as best they can. We will keep supporting the athletes by consulting with them and their respective NOCs, and by providing them with the latest information and developments, which are accessible for athletes worldwide on the Athlete365 website and via their respective NOCs and IFs.”
Whether or not the Olympics take place, Skinner has proven more than adept in her return to Elite gymnastics. She earned a spot as an alternate on Team USA for the 2019 World Championships, held this past October in Stuttgart, Germany.
More recently, as in just over a week ago, Skinner competed in International Gymnix, held in Montreal, Canada. It was her first international competition since 2016, and she walked away with three individual gold medals, a team gold and an individual silver for good measure.