Elite program tries to move on as U. S. championships start on Friday night in Boston.
BOSTON — The pep talk was short and to the point, a reminder to reigning world gymnastics champion Morgan Hurd that all was not lost.
The 17-year-old had just fallen off the beam at the U. S. Classic last month, ending any serious chance she had at making a run at Simone Biles in the Olympic champion’s return to competition after a two-year break. In the moment, Hurd was frustrated.
And then Tom Forster came over. The newly appointed high-performance team coordinator for the embattled USA Gymnastics women’s elite program pulled Hurd aside and put things in perspective.
“He was like, ‘It’s OK because now is not your peak time anyways,’” Hurd said. “That was the exact mindset I had.”
It was a small moment, one of many Forster shared with various competitors as he walked the floor during the first significant meet of his tenure.
