By ANDRE CHAMPAGNE, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter
Kailin Chio continues to take the gymnastics world by storm every time she competes.
After earning SEC Freshman of the Year honors last season, Chio entered her sophomore season with high expectations. And she’s not only meeting them – she’s surpassing them.
On Tuesday, Chio was named as the SEC Gymnast of the Week for the fourth time this season following a stellar performance in LSU’s 198.125-197.925 loss to top-ranked Oklahoma last Friday. She earned two perfect 10.0 scores – one on vault and one on balance beam – and captured her sixth all-around title of the season with a 39.850.
Head coach Jay Clark said he is running out of words to describe the young, rising star.
“There’s just not a whole lot you can say then, ‘Wow,’” Clark said on Monday. “I mean, she’s just operating at such an efficient, consistent, extremely high-level and seems to really rise to the occasion in moments where we need her to be. I think every team needs somebody like that. I’ve called them mistake erasers before and she has played that role for us.”
Chio’s first perfect score of the night came on vault – her strongest of the four events. She stuck her sixth straight landing on vault and her first ten of the season on the event.
It was only a matter of time.
— LSU Gymnastics (@LSUgym) February 21, 2026
Kailin Chio is perfect on vault for the first time this season and the second of her career!
📺 ESPN2 | @kailin_chio pic.twitter.com/eAm3A0U4NL
Ironically, Chio thought her turn could have been cleaner.
“What’s funny about that is I think that was actually my worst vault I think I’ve done of the five others that I stuck,” Chio said on Monday. “I think the vault I’ve been wanting it for so long, but it was just funny that it came on that one instead of all the others one.”
Chio later added a second ten on balance beam to cap her night in Norman. It was her second perfect beam routine of the season.
The one and only @kailin_chio
— LSU Gymnastics (@LSUgym) February 21, 2026
She earns her second perfect score on beam this year, her fourth 10 of the season, and fifth of her career!
📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/zd8r2EtgNA
For Chio, the most meaningful part of the night was celebrating with her teammates.
“It’s awesome. It’s a feeling you’ll never forget,” Chio said on the ESPN broadcast after the meet last Friday. “The way they just want you to succeed so much and they’re just here for you every step of the way.”
As a freshman, Chio showed flashes of her potential, posting highs of 10.0 on vault, 9.950 on bars and beam, and 9.975 on floor. But consistency was occasionally a challenge throughout certain meets.
Now, with a year of experience behind her, she has adopted a different approach.
“I think (I’m) pacing myself in the gym and kind of just not trying so hard in the beginning of the year,” Chio said. “Last year, I was just trying really hard to just be perfect and I think that it took a lot more energy. I feel so much better even though I’ve done all-around every meet than I have last year and I think that’s just because of pacing and just being able to just be more free every time I compete and doing my gymnastics to the best of my ability.”
And it’s evident her new approach is paying off. Through seven meets, Chio has already recorded four perfect tens this season – and she is sure to add more.
If she continues at this pace, Chio will have the opportunity to cement herself as one of the best gymnasts, if not THE best, in LSU history.
Be the first to comment