Courtney McGregor
Full nameCourtney Louise McGregor
Country represented New Zealand
Born (1998-11-17) 17 November 1998 (age 25)
Christchurch, New Zealand
HometownChristchurch, New Zealand
DisciplineWomen's artistic gymnastics
LevelSenior International Elite
(New Zealand national team)
Years on national team2014
ClubChristchurch School of Gymnastics
Head coach(es)Mary Wright
Medal record
Representing  New Zealand
Pacific Rim Championships
Silver medal – second place 2014 Richmond Vault
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Everett Vault

Courtney Louise McGregor (born 17 November 1998) is a retired artistic gymnast who represented New Zealand. She competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics and retired in 2020.

Early life and education

McGregor was born in 1998 in Christchurch, where she lived until May 2016.[1] Her parents are Tina and Russell McGregor.[2] Of Māori descent, she is affiliated with the Ngāti Kahungunu iwi.[3] She attended Villa Maria College and later switched to The Correspondence School.[4]

Gymnastics career

McGregor started gymnastics at age six.[4] Her first international competitions were the 2012 Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships in Everett, Washington, and the 2013 Australian Youth Olympic Festival in Sydney.[4] She competed at the 2014 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Nanning, China,[5] and also won a bronze medal in the vault at the 2016 Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships.[1][4]

She qualified for the Olympics at the 2016 Gymnastics Olympic Test Event (known as Aquece Rio 2016) in Rio de Janeiro.[1] She was the first artistic gymnast to compete for New Zealand since Laura Robertson at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.[4] At 17, McGregor was New Zealand's youngest Olympic competitor in 2016.[6] She finished 41st in the all-around in qualifications, with a best placing of 13th on vault.[7]

College career

MacGregor accepted an athletic scholarship at Boise State University and enrolled there in May 2016 to study mathematics and philosophy.[4][6] Her Christchurch-born coach, Mary Wright, continued to train her in Boise.[6]

She won the 2019 all-around competition for the Mountain West Conference.[8] She was forced to sit out the 2020 season after rupturing her Achilles tendon [9] and subsequently announced her retirement from gymnastics.[10]

References

  1. ^ a b c "McGregor continues to wow after winning a ticket to Rio". The Press. 20 April 2016. p. B13. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  2. ^ Barclay, Chris (21 April 2016). "Aspiring Olympian Courtney McGregor awaits NZOC call on Rio". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  3. ^ "43 Māori athletes to head to Rio Olympics". Te Karere. 5 August 2016. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Christchurch gymnast Courtney McGregor wins bronze before Olympic test event". The Press. 15 April 2016. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  5. ^ "2014 World Gymnastics Championships athletes - Courtney Mcgregor". longinestiming.com. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  6. ^ a b c Barclay, Chris (3 August 2016). "McGregor ready to vault into the limelight at Rio Olympics". The Press. p. B20. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
  7. ^ "Kiwi gymnast Courtney McGregor upgraded to 13th in vault". stuff.co.nz. 16 August 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
  8. ^ Counts, Ron (30 January 2020). "Boise State gymnast McGregor will miss season, 2020 Olympics". Idaho Statesman. Team captain and 2019 all-round conference champion Courtney McGregor will be on the sideline in crutches during Friday's home opener against BYU (7 p.m.) after she suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon, which will force her to miss the rest of her senior season.
  9. ^ Counts, Ron. "One of Boise State's top athletes is out for the season — and the Olympics — with injury".
  10. ^ @courtneymcgym (26 May 2020). "Untitled" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
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