University of North Carolina Athletics
Gymnastics Spotlight: Michelle Ikoma
February 15, 2011 | Women's Gymnastics
Feb. 15, 2011
Michelle Ikoma was a key contributor to Tar Heel gymnastics during her freshman campaign, recording personal-best scores of 9.775 on vault and floor exercise last season. Ikoma who hails from Naperville, Ill. was looking to be a strong competitor again this season but unfortunately tore her Achilles tendon in the preseason.
Coach Derek Galvin on Ikoma: The whole team feels for her right now. She has handled [her injury] very well, much better than I would have. She is an incredible, tenacious young lady: a very, very hard worker. When she sets a goal, she is unrelenting in pursuing that goal. And I know that is the way she is going to approach the rehab for this injury. She will play a major role in the team this year. It may not be as a competitor but she has already been very encouraging to her teammates. She is going to be a very important part of our success this year, her attitude, her strength and the way she encourages her teammates.
TarHeelBlue.com: Can you talk about your injury and the recovery process that you're going through?
Michelle Ikoma: I hurt myself in practice; we were just tumbling on floor when I took off for a double pike and for no real reason my Achilles tendon tore. I've had surgery; basically the doctor went in and put in some sutures to put it back together so now it's just letting it heal. He wants to wait eight weeks before he lets me do range of motion so that it heals really well so when I come back it minimizes the risk of it happening again. And realistically there is little chance of it [happening again]. So after the eight-week mark, it will just be a lot of rehab because I will probably lose most of the muscle I have in my left leg. We have the best training staff here so I am excited to work with them. The goal is six months from the incident to be back and get the okay to do everything in the gym. It will be a process of getting my skills back but I'll be allowed to do everything like I did before.
THB.com: How would you define your role on this team?
MI: Now it's a lot of the same things that I did before. The only thing I wont be able to do is to contribute competitively obviously, not this season anyways. Just being a good teammate, supporting all the other twelve girls here because they are all amazing. I have certainly been there having a bad there so having someone there to keep you going, giving you a little bit of encouragement goes a long way. So I'll definitely keep doing that. I've kinda taken on the role of the third coach informally. We do it to each other anyways but now I can keep 100 percent of my focus on that since I don't have my own skills to work on. Giving corrections here and there, seeing little things that can help our team score going up. That's another role that I've stepped into.
THB.com: What do you think about the potential of this year's team?
MI: I'm so excited for this team. I can only speak from one year of experience, but I've never seen a teamwork so hard. We've all pushed each other and I think that's not only made us better but also brought us together as a team. I'm just excited to be involved with the team and be there when we compete. That's what its all about, its about taking all the repetitions we do in here [in practice] and taking it out to the meets every week.
THB.com: What is the biggest difference between freshman and sophomore year?
MI: As a team, I think its kinda one of those things where certainly everyone worked hard last year, but I think we all know exactly what our goals are as a team this year. We established that on day one and it's one concentrated effort. It's one of those things the coaches keep saying. It's what this season is about; it's all thirteen of us on the team, plus our coaches, plus our training staff, strength and conditioning coach; everybody is on board with the same goals, pushing the same direction and that has made the difference for us this year.
THB.com: What is the best thing about being a UNC athlete?
MI: Just the support and the people that I have around me. Even with this injury, its one of the most amazing things I've found. Every single person that I've run into, they genuinely care about how I'm doing both physically and emotionally and seeing that genuine care I think is truly amazing.
THB.com: As a sophomore, you obviously excel in the classroom. What interests you in biology and medicine? Are you thinking of becoming a doctor?
MI: I don't know for sure, what I'm pretty sure is that in my future is more school. It's either going to be medical school or graduate school. I've definitely not ruled out going the medical route but I've also considered trying to get my Ph.D. and working towards a career as a professor. What I'm looking forward to in any career I go into is the ability to know that you've made a difference in someone else's life. Being in medicine you certainly will get that and I think in education you get that as well.
THB.com: What is the best class you've taken at UNC?
MI: One of the hardest classes for me to make an A in but also one of the most interesting classes I've taken was History 140. Well personally I'm much more math, sciencey [type of person]. But it was really interesting because it was world history since 1945. The way that the professor taught it, I was able to see that's why we have this problem today. For me because I don't have the greatest background in that, it really was information that stayed with me and had a broader application for me.
THB.com: Your sister was a gymnast at Stanford, how has she influenced your career?
MI: She is probably the person who has had the greatest influence in my gymnastics career. When I was younger, for me, it was more or less, a competition between her and me—I wanted to be as good as her. That definitely made me better; it gave me a tangible 'I want to do that.' Going to college and as we got older, she has taken on the role as more of a mentor. If I have a problem she has almost had a similar one and I can go to her for advice. That has been really helpful for me to have that as a resource.
THB.com: What is your favorite thing about Chapel Hill?
MI: The University as a whole, I love how many different things there are that you can get involved in. If you want to do something, it's there.
