Cameron Rogers had quite a season last year in men’s club gymnastics.  He started out by winning the 2009 Region 8 all-around championship over such stalwarts as Edward Mesa, Harris Coleman, Alex Barrera and Wyatt Aycock.  Although he placed 17th AA at JO Nationals, he came back with a vengeance at the VISA U.S. Championships by capturing titles in the AA, rings and parallel bars.  For added measure he tied for 2nd on floor.  Shortly after VISAs, Rogers was part of the victorious U.S. Junior Team that competed against Canada and Germany.  To finish off the year, it was announced in November that Rogers and fellow Junior National Team member CJ Maestas signed gymnastics scholarship offers from Illinois.

Rogers, who trains under Coach Stass Savitch at Zenith Gymnastics in Charlotte, NC, is a three-time Junior National Team member who seems to have his future all mapped out.  Academics plays an important role in his life, as he definitely has big plans upon completion of his gymnastics career.  Already accepted into the bioengineering program at Illinois, Rogers will be ready to settle into a busy life as a scholar-athlete in the fall.  He figures to play a prominent role for the Illini next season under Head Coach Justin Spring.  The signing of Rogers and Maestas represents the best recruiting haul in the country for the 2010-2011 season.  Simply put, the Illini will be loaded next year.

According to Rogers’ parents, he was an early gymnast.  "He was constantly turning cartwheels as we would walk through the mall."  One of their favorite stories is when they were at a softball game when Cameron was four, and a little girl approached and claimed that she could do a cartwheel.  Cameron quickly exclaimed that he could do ten, and "then proceeded to tumble down the hill like a wheel."  At that point, Cameron’s parents knew they were on to something and quickly enrolled him into the local soccer program.  "We were very perceptive parents!  It took one of the other soccer parents, after observing Cameron doing one-armed cartwheels during the game, to advise us we had Cameron in the wrong sport!"  Wrong sport indeed.

The state of North Carolina has produced many elite gymnasts over the years.  Cameron Rogers will soon be joining an impressive list of gymnasts from his home state now competing in the Division I ranks.  Here are just a few:  Kent Caldwell (Michigan), Patrick Piscitelli (Oklahoma), Nic Blair (Cal), Cliff Kohut and John Robinson (Nebraska).

StickItMedia recently had the pleasure of interviewing Cameron Rogers.

SiM:  How did you get started in gymnastics?

Cameron:  I got started in gymnastics when my parents noticed I was doing more cartwheels on the soccer field than actually playing soccer.  They decided gymnastics might be a better sport for me than soccer.  That was when I was five, and I’ve been doing it ever since.

SiM:  What have been your biggest obstacles and challenges to remaining highly competitive?

Cameron:  Staying healthy is definitely the biggest challenge.  I think most gymnasts face this same issue.  If I can stay healthy and able to train, I feel like I can stay at a competitive level.

SiM:  Which events challenge you the most and why?

Cameron:  High bar is the most challenging event for me.  When I was younger I was extremely afraid of dismounts and high bar as a whole, so that set me back a lot.  Now it doesn’t scare me so much, but it is still the hardest event for me to learn new skills on.

SiM:  Region 8 has always been a highly competitive region. What’s it been like to compete in that region and what are your fondest memories?

Cameron:  I love my region!  We are always one of the most spirited teams at JO Nationals and often one of the most competitive teams as well.  My fondest memories are winning regionals last year and when our level 9 team, which included me, Danell Leyva, Max Mayr, Edward Mesa, Harris Coleman, and Alex Barerra, won the team competition at JO Nationals.  Region team competition is the closest we ever get in the JO program to competing in a real team atmosphere, and it’s a lot of fun.

SiM:  What are your goals for your final season of club competition?

Cameron:  Right now I am just trying to get healthy.  I had surgery on my hand in late January, and I want to get healthy for Visa Championships in August and then college next season.  If all goes well, I hope to be ready to compete at JO Nationals in May.

SiM:  What have been the highlights and proudest achievements of your club career?

Cameron:  My highlights have been making the Junior National Team.  I made it as a level 9 in 2006, as a level 10 in 2008, and then again as a level 10 in 2009.  Winning Visa Championships last year was definitely my proudest achievement of my club career.

SiM:  Explain the recruiting process which led to your decision to sign with Illinois?

Cameron:  Recruiting this year was crazy!  They were some of the most fun few months of my life, but the last few weeks before I signed were also the most stressful.  It is such a huge decision, so I wanted to make sure I made the right one.  I had lots of great choices for college, but after visiting Illinois, getting to know the guys on that team, and researching the academic opportunities it offered, and not to mention the awesome coaches, I knew it was the right place for me.  I’m really excited for college next year, and I am definitely glad I made the decision I made.

SiM:  What are your goals for your first season at Illinois?

Cameron:  I really want the team to win the Big Ten and NCAAs next year!  The team is already really strong this year, and we have a strong class of freshmen coming in next, so I think we have a really good shot at it!  I also hope to compete as much as possible and contribute to the team as much as I can.

SiM:  What are your academic goals?

Cameron:  I got accepted into the Bioengineering program at Illinois, so that is what I plan on studying for my undergraduate degree, but I am planning on continuing my education by going to grad school.  I either want to go to medical school or get my MBA; I haven’t decided which yet.

SiM:  Who are your role models and why?

Cameron:  Kohei Uchimura is an amazing gymnast, and I would love to make my gymnastics more like his.  Paul Ruggeri at Illinois is also a big inspiration.  I met him at my first camp at the Olympic Training Center when I was in middle school, and I have watched him improve to be one of the best gymnasts in the country.  I feel like we have similar backgrounds in the sport, and I would love to emulate what he has done with his career in college.  Not to mention, he’s also a really exciting gymnast to watch!

SiM:  What do you like to do other than gymnastics?

Cameron:  I like to hang out with friends and go to movies and other normal stuff like that whenever I can.  I like to wakeboard and water ski at a lake near my house.  I also like to play tennis with my dad.

SiM:  What’s the best advice you have ever received?

Cameron:  At the Olympic Training Center there are lots of quotes all over the walls in the gym, and all of those are really good.  My favorite one is probably the one over the door to the gym that says “If you’re going to be in the gym, be in the gym.”  Ron Brant used to always remind us to read that quote at National Team camps, and I try to remind myself of that every time I am in the gym.

SiM:  What is your favorite thing about walking into the gym every day?

Cameron:  I love that every day is different.  I am always working towards learning new skills or improving current ones.  It’s always so exhilarating to learn a new skill, so I always look forward to trying to do that everyday.

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