Streamwood’s O’Connor headed to Illinois

Streamwood High School senior Giana O’Connor has had an amazing career in gymnastics to say the least.

She is a level 10 gymnast who has competed through two different clubs, and she even qualified for the Junior Olympic nationals in 2010 where she finished third nationally on beam and 11th overall.

Now, O’Connor is getting ready to head to Champaign as she will sign a national letter of intent on Wednesday to compete for the Fighting Illini gymnastics team at the University of Illinois, where she will major in business finance and minor in accounting.

O’Connor got started with gymnastics through the Streamwood Park District when she was just 2 years old, originally with the intent of learning how to flip for cheerleading.

“(My mom, Gina) taught me how to flip,” said O’Connor. “Then they put me in (gymnastics) because I was flipping off the couches all the time.”

“We put her in the classes to learn how to flip for cheerleading, and they stole her,” said Gina O’Connor, who was a cheerleader herself.

“Because she was flipping off the couch, (Gina) decided to look into the park district to see if there was a mom-and-tot gymnastics program,” said Giana’s father, Mike O’Connor. “We found one right here in Bartlett and she loved it. She continued for a second year, and at that point her sister (Genna) was also going.”

At age 4, Giana began competing in all four gymnastics events for Gymkhana in Hanover Park and was coached by Jackie Buckley. After spending 12 years at Gymkhana, she now competes at Gymnasti in Carol Stream, coached by Ron Nasti.

“We’ll never forget the Buckleys for what they’ve done for (Giana),” said Mike O’Connor. “Jackie has taught her so much and got her up to her level 10 status. When she got to level 10, she was the only level 10 gymnast at Gymkhana so she really had nobody to push her, and she was lacking that need to have a teammate. She switched to Gymnasti where she had two level 10 teammates, and she increased her difficulty level. Ron has taken what the Buckleys created in Giana and has brought her farther. Without them, Giana wouldn’t have gone as far. They’ve been phenomenal to her.”

Having experience in all four events is a plus for O’Connor but as far as a favorite event goes, she has a hard time picking just one.

“I lean between vault and floor, it switches off,” she said with a laugh.

O’Connor, like many gymnasts, had to face the decision of whether or not to represent her high school in IHSA competition. Streamwood is in a co-op team with Bartlett and South Elgin for gymnastics; and while the opportunity was there, she felt more comfortable sticking to the schedule she’d been used to her whole life with club.

“I never did it, but for a while I was teetering back and forth on whether I wanted to compete for high school or stay with club,” she said. “I ended up staying with club.”

“A lot of kids that were at Gymkhana with her left during the high school season,” said Mike O’Connor. “I thought she was well established with the coaching staff she had at Gymkhana, and they were really advancing her along. She was practicing for 24 hours a week, and I thought if she competed in high school she wouldn’t be getting those 24 hours a week of practice.”

Many athletes try multiple sports when they’re younger and then figure out which one suits them best much later in life. With O’Connor, although she tried tee-ball for a year and competed in cheerleading, all she’s ever known is gymnastics; and to her it’s more of a way of life than it is just her sport of choice.

“I like competing once I’m out there, but I get nervous,” she said. “I just like practicing, I don’t even really know why I love gymnastics so much.”

“She liked it so much when she was younger, and I think now it’s just a habit that she wouldn’t know what to do without,” said Mike O’Connor.

O’Connor may not know why she loves being a gymnast so much, but she does have a favorite gymnast that she looks up to and it’s Olympic gold-medalist Shawn Johnson.

“I just love how powerful she is,” O’Connor said of Johnson. “I try to be like her, and I look up to her a lot. I feel like we’re the same body type. She’s just my favorite.”

“(Olympic gold-medalist) Nastia Liukin is more graceful ... I’m not graceful at all,” O’Connor laughed.

As she looks forward to competing in the Big Ten for the Fighting Illini, O’Connor is excited for the opportunity to be part of a team while continuing to improve her individual skills.

“College is more about the team, where club is more individual,” she said. “You’re competing for the whole team (in college).”

“That’s what I’m the most thankful for,” said Gina O’Connor of her daughter getting to be part of a team at U of I. “She’s put so many hours into it that when she was younger she always had to miss the birthday parties because she had to go to practice. The gymnastics team does everything together. On Giana’s visit, they went to the Illini vs. Northwestern (football) game and all sat together in the front row. It was really cool.”

“I’ll be sad for her to leave, but I’m so excited for her to have this opportunity,” said Mike O’Connor. “We couldn’t be more proud.”