Ashley Calvert
Hunter Calvert has always been fearless. His earliest days at the playground were spent jumping off swings and keeping his mother on her toes, but now, he has transitioned from hanging on the monkey bars to hanging on the rings.
At just 9 years old, Hunter has already made a name for himself in the world of gymnastics. He has earned several medals and practices regularly at The Ohio State University gymnasium. And, he finds a way to develop his skills no matter where he is.
“He practices on anything and everything any chance he gets,” says Ashley Calvert, Hunter’s mom. “He’ll be on the backs of two chairs trying to do dips and stuff like parallel bars, and I’m like, ‘Those are not the parallel bars. You’re going to hurt yourself. Get down.’”
Ashley Calvert
Hunter didn’t plan to do gymnastics. In fact, he initially entered the gym as a favor to his younger sister Peyton, so she would not be alone.
“She just needed that comfort of her brother helping her out and being there with her,” Ashley says. “So, we talked him into trying it, and then he fell in love with it.”
The siblings tumbled into gymnastics at Fliptastic! Gymnastics in Hilliard. But even at age 6, the coaches quickly realized Hunter was different. After a year, they pulled Ashley aside and recommended that Hunter go to a gym with more competitive training that focused on boys’ gymnastics since boys compete in different events, including the pommel horse, parallel bars and still rings.
Hunter learns quickly. He masted new skills at a much faster rate than the other kids, leading him to join the International; Gymnastics Academy which trains at OSU’s gyms.
Ashley Calvert
Going for gold
This was when training turned serious for Hunter. He began preparing for competition season, which runs from November to March. This season was almost derailed when Hunter broke his arm before competition season began, but he got out of the brace and onto the bars quickly.
Hunter placed first All Around in each competition this season, and he medaled at each event, including the Cowtown, the Scarlet and Grey Invitational, the Blaine Wilson Sports Fest, the Don Sellman Invitational and the Queen City Classic. He then went on to compete at the Ohio and West Virginia Men’s State Championship, where he placed first All Around, crowning him the Level 3 Division 1 Senior State Champion.
Ashley Calvert
A strong support system
Hunter’s mom is at every event cheering in the stands, but watching her son achieve success is not always easy.
“I never thought that gymnastics would be such an intense sport,” Ashley says. “But when you’re watching and waiting for those scores to pop up… as a mom, I find myself holding my breath.”
But Hunter is calm and cool under pressure.
“I just think of it as another practice, just a little bit shorter,” Hunter says.
“It was amazing to watch how he just tuned everybody else out and just focused in on what he was doing,” Ashley says.
Hunter also receives wide support from the Grove City community. His teacher, Kathleen Castle, always asks him about his competition results.
Although Hunter’s gymnastics journey started on the school playgrounds, he now prefers to practice his moves at the gym where he hopes to flip his way to even more success.
Maggie Fipps is an editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
