Parkettes National Gymnastics Training Center

Parkettes National Gymnastics Training Center, widely known as Parkettes, is a gymnastics club located in Allentown, Pennsylvania. It has produced several teams and individual gymnasts representing the United States, the Czech Republic, and Canada in international meets, including the Olympic Games.^[1]

History

20th century

Parkettes was founded by Bill Strauss and his wife, Donna Strauss.^[2] It started as a backyard after-school workout program at the Strauss home.^[2] It was later in a barn, school, and church basement as they got the program established.^[2] Former Mack Trucks CEO, Alfred Pelletier, helped the program move to a permanent home.^[2][3]

The first Olympian produced by the club was Jody Yocum, who was named as an alternate for the 1976 Summer Olympics.^[2]

• In 1986, three Parkettes' gymnasts placed at the USA Gymnastics National Championships. Jennifer Sey won the competition, Hope Spivey came in second, and Alyssa Solomon came in fourth.

• In 1988, Parkettes-trained gymnast Hope Spivey represented the United States at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.

• In 1992, Parkettes' gymnast Kim Kelly was selected for the 1992 Summer Olympics gymnastics training squad.

• In 1998 and 1999, Kristen Maloney won the United States National Senior All-Around gold medal. In 2000, she competed at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, where she won the bronze medal.

• In 1999, 2000, and again in 2001, Kristal Uzelac won the United States Junior National All-Around gold.

21st century

• In 2002, Vanessa Meloche, a Canadian gymnast at Parkettes, finished third at the Canadian championships and first on the uneven bars.

• Parkettes 50th anniversary was Summer 2018.^[2]

• In 2022, 11 Parkettes' gymnasts made misconduct complaints to the U.S. Center for SafeSport that resulted in an ongoing investigation of five Parkettes coaches.^[4][5][6]

Media coverage

In 2003, CNN aired a documentary, Achieving the Perfect 10, which contained some criticisms of the demanding and competitive nature of Parkettes's training program.^[7] In 2008, Jennifer Sey, the 1986 National Champion from Parkettes, published a book, Chalked Up, which was critical of Parkettes and elite gymnastics.^[8]

Notable gymnasts & alumni

• Christina Desiderio
• Margzetta Frazier
• Emjae Frazier
• Kristen Maloney^[2]
• Vanessa Meloche
• Elizabeth Price^[2]
• Jennifer Sey
• Hope Spivey^[2]
• Kristal Uzelac^[2]

Notable coaches

• Brian Babcock, 1985 USA Gymnastics National Championships winner
• Donna Strauss, Parkettes co-founder
• Natalia Yurchenko, Soviet gymnast and 1983 World championships gold medal winner