At just 13 years old, Fiona O’Brien of Greenbelt is already balancing more than most: school, international travel and a rigorous gymnastics schedule that would make even the most dedicated athletes sweat. This year, all that work paid off. Fiona was officially selected to be on the 2025 U.S. Acrobatic Gymnastics National Team – an incredible honor for a gymnast of her age and a major step forward in her already impressive gymnastics journey.
“It’s exciting … it’s really cool,” said Fiona about making the team. Currently an eighth grader at the Key School in Annapolis, Fiona has a packed schedule ahead: she’ll travel to Arizona in April for a national team training camp, compete in Canada in May, head to Bulgaria in June for the International Acro Cup and just weeks later, return to the U.S. to compete at the 2025 USA Gymnastics Championships in Rhode Island.
That busy competition schedule comes on the heels of a standout performance at last year’s National Championships in Minneapolis, where Fiona and her teammates Gabby Zsakany and Juliet Hanks medaled in every event (see the July 10, 2024 issue). They placed gold in Balance, bronze in Dynamic, bronze in Finals and gold in All-Around, placing them just 0.08 points ahead of the bronze-winning team in a nail-bitingly close competition.
Despite the significance of the accomplishment, Fiona and her mom, Jamie Krauk, speak about it quite humbly. “It’s been a steady progression,” Krauk said when asked how it feels to see her daughter reach this level. “You kind of find it normal,” Fiona added. “It’s been normalized,” agreed Krauk. “But we are still so proud of you.”
Fiona’s gymnastics journey began almost as soon as she could walk. “I was just a baby,” Fiona said. Krauk recalled finding a tiny Fiona climbing furniture and leaping off the back of their couch. It wasn’t long before they decided, “We’ve got to get this kid into some sort of activity.” A mommy-and-me class quickly revealed Fiona’s natural affinity for gymnastics, and she hasn’t stopped since.
Fiona began with artistic gymnastics but discovered and transitioned to acrobatic after taking an injury leave. “I had no idea what acrobatic gymnastics was at first,” she said. “I thought of aerial silks and front walkovers, and that’s what a lot of people think it is.” But acro, as the sport is often called, trades our typical notion of gymnastics, with its beams and bars, for partner-based, choreographed routines performed entirely on the floor – often involving jaw-dropping balances, flips and throws. “In acro, artistry really matters,” Fiona said. “It should get more recognition.” Anyone who’s ever seen a routine would be quick to agree.
Fiona trains five to six days a week, logging around 22 hours in the gym and often doing intense conditioning work. She said that she finds training to be the hardest part of the whole competition cycle – along with the early mornings.
Fiona competes as the top in a women’s trio – the gymnast who is lifted, balanced and thrown – alongside two bases, who are typically older and taller. The group-based nature of acrobatic gymnastics adds a layer of complexity and requires constant coordination, trust and chemistry between partners. “Artistic [gymnastics] is an individual sport. You’re with your team, but when you’re out on that beam, if you fall or if you hit, it’s all you,” said Krauk. “[Acrobatic] is different. It’s not like a team sport where they can just sub somebody in. You make or break with your group.”
Come summer, after Nationals, Fiona’s current trio will break up as one of her bases heads to college. To requalify for the national team, she’ll need to form a new group and try out again. It’s a reality of the sport that Fiona is already familiar with – and one she’s prepared to face.
But despite the pressures of elite competition, Fiona is still very much a teenager. “I love to sleep in,” she said with a laugh in response to what she does when she has a day off. With most days packed with school and hours of practice, she treasures her free time. “I don’t get a lot of down time so when I can just do nothing, it’s really nice.” So on those slower days, she enjoys hanging out with her friends, jumping on her trampoline or watching a movie.
While Fiona might not know what the future looks like in terms of her gymnastics career, she does know that she wants to keep going. With her sights set high and her feet (sometimes) in the air, she’s not planning on slowing down.
Diya Shah is a student at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism interning at the Greenbelt News Review.
