Jennifer Pinches

Overview

Pinches was born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent on 25 May 1994 and started gymnastics at Fromeside Gymnastics club, after moving house to the outskirts of Bristol.

"I started when I was six years old after seeing some clips on the telly of a gymnast swinging around and really wanted to try it out because I had just quit ballet. So I started it at the gym and carried it on."

Jenni attended The King's School in Macclesfield until she completed her A Levels in 2013. Pinches was put on the national team at the age of nine after winning her first title- British Level 4 voluntary champion- in November 2003. By age ten she had ranked number one in Britain for her age group.

In 2005 Channel Five featured her in a television documentary called 'A Different Life'. Pinches stated "My ultimate aim is to just be in the Olympics, and just compete in the Olympics".

Pinches started training at the City of Liverpool Gymnastics Club in 2006 after moving with her family from the South West to the North West. She received guidance there from Amanda Reddin OBE; 1984 Olympian and Master Coach, responsible for training many British gymnasts, including Beth Tweddle MBE.

She remained part of the British national squad throughout her career, competing in two World Championships as well as by competing at the London 2012 Olympic Games at Senior level. She was awarded 'Master Gymnast' status in 2012 for services to her country.

Following the Olympics, Pinches retired from Elite gymnastics and returned to King's School Macclesfield Sixth Form to complete her A Levels, graduating with straight A grades.

In June 2013, Pinches was invited to Buckingham Palace, alongside her Olympic team members. Throughout the year she has also visited local clubs and schools, giving motivational talks.

In September 2013, after a 13-month break from gymnastics training, Pinches joined the University California Los Angeles (UCLA), where she began competing for the Bruins college gymnastics team.

She is a fan of the Vlogbrothers, having flashed the Nerdfighter sign during the 2012 London Olympics final.

Besides gymnastics, Pinches is also an iOS app developer, and released the puzzle game app "Laser Chambers" on the iTunes AppStore, with her boyfriend James McIlveen.

2009

In July, Pinches competed at the European Youth Olympic Festival in Tampere, Finland. She placed tenth in the all around final with a score of 53.100.

In December, Pinches competed at the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup event in Doha, Qatar. She placed fourth on vault with a score of 13.625 and sixth on balance beam with a score of 13.025.

2010

In August, Pinches competed at an international friendly with gymnasts from Switzerland in Gateshead, United Kingdom. She placed third in the all around competition with a score of 55.300.

In October, Pinches competed at the 2010 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands. She finished thirty second in the all around competition with a score of 53.898.

In November, Pinches competed at the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup event in Glasgow, United Kingdom. She placed sixth on vault scoring 13.337 and third on floor scoring 14.150.

2011

In February, Pinches competed at the English Championships in Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom. She placed second all around with a score of 56.05.

At the beginning of April, Pinches competed at the 2011 European Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Berlin, Germany. She placed twenty first in all around qualifications but was unable to move on to finals because of the two per country rule. She said, "It wasn't the best competition and it wasn't the worst, I'm a bit disappointed with floor but pleased with beam after falling in warm up! I really enjoyed being out there with Danusia, not a great competition technically but still a lot of fun!"

Later in April, Pinches placed eighth at the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup event in Glasgow, United Kingdom with a score of 51.300.

In May, Pinches participated at the British Teams competition in Guildford, United Kingdom. She helped her club, City of Liverpool, win first place with an all around score of 53.100.

In July, Pinches competed at the British Championships in Liverpool, United Kingdom. She placed third in the all around competition with a score of 52.850. She said, "My competition went well. I fell on bars and beam but the rest of my routines went quite well. The last two British Championships haven’t gone great for me due to injury and a bit of disaster on vault, so I’m pleased with today for various reasons." In event finals, she placed fifth on vault scoring 13.225, third on uneven bars scoring 13.500, fifth on balance beam scoring 12.600, and third on floor scoring 14.150.

In October, Pinches competed at the 2011 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Tokyo, Japan. She placed thirty seventh in the all around competition with a score of 53.766. In the team finals, she helped the British team place fifth with a balance beam score of 13.833.

2012

In March, Pinches won the all around competition at the English Championships in Kent, United Kingdom with a score of 55.150.

In May, Pinches competed at the 2012 European Women's Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Brussels, Belgium. She contributed a balance beam score of 13.000 and a floor score of 13.600 to the British team's fourth-place finish.

At the end of May, Pinches participated in the British Teams competition which acted as the first Olympic trial. She helped her club, City of Liverpool, win first place with an all around score of 52.850.

At the beginning of June, Pinches competed at an international friendly with gymnasts from Finland and Spain in Ipswich, United Kingdom which was also the second Olympic trial. She placed seventh in the all around with a score of 53.650. In event finals, she placed first on vault scoring 13.425 and sixth on uneven bars scoring 12.600.

At the end of June, Pinches competed at the British Championships in Liverpool, United Kingdom. This is the third and final Olympic Trail to decide which gymnasts will represent the United Kingdom at the Olympics. She placed second in the all around competition with a score of 56.350. She said, "I’m really happy with today’s competition. Everyone knows how crucial today was and to compete cleanly was really important. My routines went well and I just hope I’ve impressed the selectors with what I’ve done today. To medal at the British championships against some amazing gymnasts is a big achievement so I’m delighted." In event finals, she placed second on vault scoring 13.875, first on balance beam scoring 14.300, and seventh on floor scoring 12.500.

At the beginning of July, Pinches was selected to compete for the United Kingdom at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

London Olympics

At the end of July, Pinches competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom. She helped the British team qualify to the team finals with an all around score of 55.266. In the team final, she contributed scores of 14.833 on vault, 11.833 on balance beam, and 14.366 on floor toward the British team's sixth-place finish. Pinches said, "It’s everything I could have dreamed of and more. I am so glad to have represented Britain. The atmosphere and home crowds were inspiring and I am so grateful to everyone who has supported me to get here. I have achieved my life’s goal by becoming an Olympian and then by breaking the record for the best result for Britain ever. It was embarrassing and disappointing (falling off the beam) so I wanted to really prove I could perform for the country and the team, on the floor and on the vault. I went on to achieve my personal best scores on both these apparatus, which I am extremely pleased with. Our team performed well, exceeding previous results and achieving what we’d hoped for, to make the team final for the first time. Gymnastics is a very young sport so I am not targeting a return in Rio 2016, but I am so happy to have finally achieved my goal. I am over the moon and on top of the world."

In September, Pinches announced her retirement from gymnastics via Twitter saying, "I will no longer be doing competitive gymnastics in or for Great Britain." The announcement came as she was leaving the United Kingdom to do volunteer work in Ecuador.

NCAA career

In Fall of 2013, Pinches started attending the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and competing in NCAA Gymnastics for the UCLA Bruins.

Pinches had a successful freshman season during the regular season competitions, averaging to 9.731 on vault (highest at 9.80), 9.765 on floor exercise (highest at 9.875) and 9.675 on balance beam (highest at 9.675). In March 2014, Pinches competed in the 2014 Pac-2 Conference Championships. She contributed 9.775 on vault and 9.80 on floor exercise to UCLA team's 4th-place finish.

In September 2015, she medically retired due to wrist injuries. She is still on the gymnastics team as an undergraduate assistant coach. Pinches hit 31 of 32 routines during her NCAA career, with career-bests of 9.875 on floor and 9.85 on vault.