In 2001 a new face turned up on Parkettes doorstep. Thirteen year old Nicole Harris had decided to move from her home town of Lido Beach, Long Island, NY, to train for elite at Parkettes. Little did she know that just a year later she would be an elite gymnast on the National Team.

After only a few weeks at Parkettes, Nikki successfully tested and passed the elite grade, and went on to win the National Gym Fest, the National Elite section of the U.S. Classic. After a quiet fall and winter, Nicole competed at the Parkette Invitational and then unfortunately injured her ankle, forcing her to miss the Podium Meet. However, the injury healed quickly and Nicole set out to qualify for her first Nationals at the American Classic in Indiana. Unfortunately, costly errors kept Nikki out of the qualifying group. This only made her more determined to succeed and at her second chance, the U.S. Classic, Nicole performed admirably and came in fifth, qualifying comfortably to her first National Championships. Nicole travelled to Ohio with high hopes of making the National Team, and she did not disappoint. Performing her innovative and artistic routines, Nicole finished ninth, and could check off one goal on her list.

Later that year Nicole achieved another one of her long term dreams: representing the USA at an international meet. Along with Sarah Shire, Marcia Newby and Susan Jackson, Nicole travelled to The Netherlands to take place in the prestigious annual meet, de Hypotheekshop. Nicole's unique bar routine impressed the judges so much that she won bronze in a field of highly experienced and talented gymnasts. After just a week or so at home, Nicole was once again bound for Europe, this time to compete in France with her home gym, Parkettes. Together with teammate Annie Fogerty, the pair won the Team Cup, ahead of clubs from the USA, France and a handful of other European nations. Nicole also went on to win the All-Around in the club division and qualified to the beam final, competing against the likes of Oana Ban, Anna Pavlova and Allana Slater!

With the 2003 World Championships being held in Anaheim and the 2004 Olympics just 18 months away, Nicole is focused to do well this year. Already having competed in 4 meets since January, Nicole has medals from each one to show the world what she's made of. This year and next are the most important of Nicole's life so far. Nicole has an excellent attitude when it comes to determination and gritty desire. Can Nicole achieve her Olympic Dreams like her childhood hero, Dominique Moceanu? One thing is for sure, Nicole won't give up with out a fight!

GS: Do you ever get jealous of other gymnasts?
NH: Well, sometimes I wish I was in their place. However, I don't ever get angry jealous because every gymnast works so hard and everything you get, you deserve!

GS: Do you ever get really frustrated when a skill you're working on just won't go right?
NH: Of course!!! That is one thing that I probably have to work on. I am a perfectionist and especially when a skill doesn't go right after a while I get frustrated but I am really getting a lot better with dealing with my frustration, like using it to get better!

GS: Have you ever gotten in trouble for back-chatting your coach?
Well, all the time in the gym you say stuff but the coaches know it's all fun and games and they usually don't take things too seriously.

GS: The morning of 9/11 was particularly worrying for you because your father is a fire fighter for the FDNY. How did you feel waiting for news that morning?
NH: Originally I was in shock and didn't even think of the whole FDNY having anything to do with it. Then I heard on the radio they were sending all the firefighters of NY there. After that I started to get really worried. I called my house in NY because at that time my family was still living there. I couldn't get a hold of anyone. I kept trying and still nothing. Fortunately my mom called the gym and I finally got to speak to her. She said that my father was fine. He'd gone surfing that morning, and if he hadn't... he would have probably been there a little too soon. One more scare I had for that day was that my Uncle Paul was supposed to be there but it just happened that he took off right before and the person working for him died. The whole ordeal was terribly upsetting for me and my Dad... and a lot of his friends died.

GS: Do you ever feel the pressures to keep tiny as a gymnast and do you hate that there's so much focus on your body size sometimes?
NH: Of course!!! That is probably one of the worst parts of gymnastics... the fact that getting weighed and always having to be in shape is very tough on a young girl's self esteem. However, after a while you learn how important it is. Being out of shape could be dangerous and much harder so all the work that is put into conditioning and health wise is definitely worth it!

GS: What do you think of the US Training Camp system and do you think it's beneficial?
NH: Well, I think the system is very good and a great way to have the best team to represent the USA at that time. I also think that it can be better in some ways, such as not making it such a boot camp! However, it is really a great way to show your improvements and work with a ton of great national staff!!!

GS: Do you think that the camps should be more regular, almost like a centralized system (where the gymnasts live at the center and only train at the home gyms once in a while) like countries such as Russia, Romania and Great Britain have?
NH: No, I think that would be detrimental because I know how tough things get when you are not living at home and I think that the way it is now is a great way of having a monthly test. I also believe that if we were to have training camps regularly, then it wouldn't be as tough as it is now because we would be so used to it that it would be just like everyday training and no big deal!

GS: Do you still keep in touch with Brooke Borso and what as it like living so closely with a team mate?
NH: Well, Brooke and I were so extremely close that being in the gym without her now is so strange!! It was like losing a sister almost. We had some really great times and looking back, all the things I remember were great times!!! I miss her very much and I do still keep in contact with her. I just wish it could be more often that I could see her!!!!

GS: A lot of people are very critical of the new code, saying that it is killing the artistic side of the sport because gymnasts have to concentrate more on the tricky combinations and tumbles rather than focus on the presentation and dance. Do you think this is true and do you wish the code wasn't so brutal?
NH: Actually, I find the code excelent!!! To me I never paid attention to it so when I became elite it was already the new code. Nothing was hard for me to adapt to and I really thought that it all made sense. Now I really like it because I believe every gymnast can do her own different thing and still get the start value. I can agree with people's thoughts on the code killing the artistic side of gymnastics but I think that once you get the routine that you have planned for then you can work on your presentation and as they say "put the frosting on the cake!"

GS: What do you think about judging? Do you think it is corrupt and how do you feel when you get a mark you really think is far too low?
NH: Well, sometimes I believe the judges are far too overrated!!! But, they are usually giving the benifit of the doubt and that is when I usually like them.

GS: To finish up, are there any last words you would like to leave our readers with?
NH: No matter how hard things get and no matter how bad they are... if they are really bad, they can only get better right?!

Thank you so much for your time, Nicole!

Photos © Don Johnson