Nola Matthews

Early life

Matthews was born on September 20, 2006, in San Jose, California to physician parents Drs. Kari Bertrand (ob-gyn) and AJ Matthews (plastic surgery). Bertrand was a two-time Olympic Trials qualifier and an All-American runner for Georgetown University.^[2] Matthews began gymnastics when she was two years old.^[3]

Junior gymnastics career

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2017–18

Matthews competed at the 2017 Hopes Classic and finished 15th with an all-around score of 44.500, meaning she was 0.500 away from qualifying for the Hopes Championships.^[4] She finished 41st in the all-around at the 2018 Hopes Classic and did not qualify for the Hopes Championships.^[5] She then competed with her club at the Tournoi International in Combs-la-Ville, France. She won the silver medal in the espoir all-around behind Levi Jung-Ruivivar. She won the gold medals on the uneven bars and balance beam in the event finals.^[6]

2019

Matthews began competing in junior elite in 2019. She made her elite debut at the American Classic where she finished ninth in the all-around and placed third on the uneven bars.^[7] Then at the U.S. Classic, she finished 22nd in the all-around and qualified for the U.S. Championships.^[8] She then finished 21st in the all-around at the U.S. Championships.^[9] She went to the Tournoi International again with her club, and she finished fifth in the all-around. She finished sixth on vault and floor exercise, and she won the gold medal on the uneven bars.^[10]

2021

Matthews did not compete in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. She returned to competition at the 2021 Winter Cup, and she finished fifth in the all-around and won the silver medal on the uneven bars behind Levi Jung-Ruivivar.^[11] Then at the American Classic, she finished ninth in the all-around.^[12] She did not compete floor exercise at the U.S. Classic, and she finished 17th on vault, 11th on uneven bars, and 10th on balance beam.^[13] She then finished thirteenth in the all-around at the U.S. National Championships.^[14]

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Senior gymnastics career

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2022

Matthews became age-eligible for senior competition in 2022. She made her senior debut at the Winter Cup and finished fifth in the all-around and won the gold on uneven bars.^[15] She then made her senior international debut at the DTB Pokal Team Challenge and won a gold medal with the American team. She won the bronze medal in the uneven bars final behind Giorgia Villa and Romi Brown.^[16] Then at the U.S. Classic, she finished sixth in the all-around and won silver on the uneven bars behind Shilese Jones.^[17] She finished 13th in the all-around at the U.S. Championships and fourth on the uneven bars.^[18]

2023

Matthews won the all-around bronze medal at the Winter Cup behind Lexi Zeiss and Ashlee Sullivan.^[19] She then competed at the DTB Pokal Team Challenge alongside Sullivan, Zoe Miller, Joscelyn Roberson, and they won the team gold medal.^[20] In April, she was named to the team to compete at the Pan American Championships alongside Miller, Roberson, Tiana Sumanasekera, Addison Fatta, and traveling replacement athlete Madray Johnson.^[21] She won the gold medal on the uneven bars and finished fourth in the all-around.^[22] The team then won the gold medal in the team final.^[23]

2024

Matthews competed at the DTB Pokal Mixed Cup in March alongside Addison Fatta, Dulcy Caylor, Kai Uemura, Fuzzy Benas, and Riley Loos; together they placed first.^[24] She next competed at the 2024 U.S. Classic and the 2024 U.S. National Championships where she placed fourteenth and eighteenth in the all-around respectively.^[25] Due to her low placement at the National Championships, she was not selected to compete at the 2024 Olympic Trials.^[26] In November Matthews signed her National Letter of Intent with the UCLA Bruins.^[27]

2025

Matthews competed at the 2025 Winter Cup where she placed fifth in the all-around and was re-added to the national team.^[28] She competed at the DTB Pokal Mixed Cup alongside Simone Rose, Ashlee Sullivan, Riley Loos, Kiran Mandava, and Alex Nitache; together they placed first as a team.^[29] In May Matthews competed at the Varna World Challenge Cup where she won gold on uneven bars and floor exercise and placed fifth on balance beam.^[30]