‘I Wanted to Quit’: Jordan Chiles Reveals She Wanted to Quit Gymnastics as a Child
Apr 19, 2025; Fort Worth, TX, USA; UCLA Bruins gymnast Jordan Chiles performs on floor exercise during the 2025 Women's National Gymnastics Championship at Dickies Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Apr 19, 2025; Fort Worth, TX, USA; UCLA Bruins gymnast Jordan Chiles performs on floor exercise during the 2025 Women's National Gymnastics Championship at Dickies Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Surely gymnastics star Jordan Chiles has already built quite a legacy. But the gist of her recent admission is that she was once ready to walk away from the sport.
A 2x Olympic medalist with multiple NCAA accolades, Chiles’ gymnastics journey might’ve ended way before she even got to UCLA. Because every time she had a hard time on the mats, a young Chiles wanted to call quits.
“I was that little kid who always had a bad day and told my mom that I wanted to quit,” she admitted to People magazine in an exclusive interview published on June 23, 2026. “But she was always that parent who was like, ‘Try quitting on a good day.’”
Apr 19, 2025; Fort Worth, TX, USA; UCLA Bruins gymnast Jordan Chiles performs on floor exercise during the 2025 Women's National Gymnastics Championship at Dickies Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Apr 19, 2025; Fort Worth, TX, USA; UCLA Bruins gymnast Jordan Chiles performs on floor exercise during the 2025 Women's National Gymnastics Championship at Dickies Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Growing up with ADHD, Chiles channelled her explosive energy into gymnastics. The critical physical movements made her feel like a superhero, akin to her favorite Spider-Man. But the urge to quit returned in 2018, after failing to make the senior national team or world team that year.
“I lost the love of the sport, I felt like I didn’t belong; I felt like gymnastics didn’t want me,” she told Elle in a 2024 interview. “I didn’t want to do anything. I was like, ‘I’m done with this sport. I’m over it.’”
This moment marked the lowest point in her gymnastics journey. But years later, a 25-year-old Chiles' perspective had shifted entirely.
How Jordan Chiles Reframed Her Quitting Impulse
Apart from the on-mat success, Chiles had been a 2025 Dancing with the Stars finalist, a New York City best-selling author, one of TIME’s Women of the Year, and received her first BET nomination for the Sportswoman of the Year. And all of it led to one honest admission.
“It took me a while to accept, even just to say, 'I'm proud of myself,’” she told People in the same segment. “Now I can look at myself and be like, ‘You know what? You've created your why now, and now you're just perfecting it.’ I'm just proud that I never quit, that I listened to my 6-year-old self.”
Chiles, who has freshly graduated from UCLA after a 4-year tenure, has a broad future lying ahead of her. But for now, the Peacock Theatre, LA, on June 28, will be her first destination for the BET award ceremony.
Do you think she’ll win it? Let us know in the comments.
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Written by
Deblina Roy