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LSU Gymnastics Sophomore Kailin Chio was named a finalist for the Class of 2026 Honda Sport Award for gymnastics, as revealed Monday by Chris Voelz, Executive Director of The Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA) presented by Honda.
The year of Kailin Ch10. 👑@kailin_chio is a finalist for the Class of 2026 Honda Sport Award for gymnastics!#GeauxTigers | @CWSA_HondaCup pic.twitter.com/jFsL5Y1Od2
— LSU Gymnastics (@LSUgym) April 27, 2026
Chio, a native of Henderson, Nevada, is one of four finalists for this year’s class. The other three finalists for the award include UCLA’s Jordan Chiles, Anna Roberts from Stanford University and Faith Torrez of the University of Oklahoma.
The gymnastics finalists were selected by a panel of experts and coaches from the Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA). Voting for the Honda Sport Award for gymnastics is conducted by senior women administrators from more than 1,000 NCAA member institutions and will open after the NCAA Final Four.
LSU’s Kailin Chio secured the first finalist spot as she was the No. 1 all-arounder during the regular season based on NQS, while Oklahoma’s Faith Torrez received a nomination for the Honda Award as the 2026 NCAA All Around Champion. The final two positions were voted on by the WCGA Coaches. Those two positions would have nominees submitted and then a final VOTE (similar to the AAI Award), 1 per institution.
The announcement comes during a landmark moment for the organization, as the CWSA celebrates its 50th anniversary during the 2025-26 collegiate athletics season. For five decades, the Honda Sport Award has honored the nation’s top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports, symbolizing “the best of the best in collegiate athletics.”
The recipient will become a finalist for the prestigious Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the Class of 2026 Honda Cup, to be presented live on Monday, July 27, at 6 p.m. CT on CBS Sports Network.
Congratulations to the 2026 Honda Sport Award finalists for Gymnastics! ⤵️
— USA Gymnastics (@USAGym) April 27, 2026
➡️ Jordan Chiles, UCLA
➡️ Kailin Chio, LSU
➡️ Anna Roberts, Stanford
➡️ Faith Torrez, Oklahoma pic.twitter.com/HpZu1RqbvD
2026 Honda Gymnastics Sport Award Finalists:
A senior from Houston, Texas, Chiles won the 2026 NCAA floor title to secure her fourth career national championship and earned the AAI Award as the nation’s top senior gymnast. The 2026 Big Ten Gymnast of the Year, she was a 23-time All-American and the only gymnast ranked in the Top 5 across all four events and the all-around this season. She totaled eight perfect 10s in 2026 and 19 in her career.
Chio, a sophomore from Henderson, Nev., earned eight All-America honors in 2026 and helped lead LSU to an NCAA national runner-up finish with only their second 198+ finals score in school history. She became the first Tiger in school history to score a perfect 10.00 at nationals. In 2026, Chio was named the SEC Gymnast of the Year and Region One Gymnast of the Year. She finished her sophomore season with 13 perfect scores, the most by any LSU gymnast in a single season and the second most 10’s in a single season by any NCAA Gymnast since 2019. She had 44 event wins on the year, the third most in school history in a single season. She now owns 67 titles in her career, with her 14 on vault this season being the most in a single season, her 11 in the all-around being the second-most, and 11 on beam matching the program record. Chio ranked No. 1 in the all-around for four consecutive weeks during the regular season and held the No. 1 spot in the nation on vault and beam. She was the 2026 SEC Champion in the all-around and vault while posting 9.900+ on all four events. She became the first NCAA gymnast to earn a perfect 30.000 when only competing in three events on March 13.
A senior from Seattle, Wash., Roberts was named the 2026 ACC Gymnast of the Year after posting three perfect 10s, the only ACC gymnast to post a perfect 10. A 10-time All-American, she led the conference in vault, beam, and all-around and set a school record 39.875 in the all-around. She also earned a conference-record eight weekly honors during the 2026 season.
Torrez won the 2026 NCAA all-around title and helped lead Oklahoma to its eighth national championship, and second straight, clinching the meet on floor. A five-time NCAA champion and 23-time All-American, she earned five conference titles across the SEC and Big 12. A senior from Bristol, Wis., she anchored one of the nation’s top programs throughout her career.
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