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KRISTIE PHILLIPS
Kristie Phillips-Bannister, formerly known as Kristie Phillips (born March 23, 1972 in
Baton Rouge, Louisiana), is a retired American elite gymnast. The 1987 senior U.S. National Champion and one of the American
team's strongest and most visible competitors in the mid-1980s, Phillips was considered to be one of the front-runners for
the 1988 U.S. Olympic team. By the Olympic Trials in 1988, however, she had endured several coaching changes and a growth
spurt, and was only named second alternate to the team. She went on to participate in competitive cheerleading in college
and has since enjoyed successful careers as an actress, stunt woman, coach and gymnastics club owner.
Phillips began gymnastics in her home state at the age of four. At ten, she was the children's all-around gold medalist at
the Louisiana State Championships. As she excelled in the sport, she moved to the Atlanta School of Gymnastics, and, finally,
to Houston Texas to train with Béla Károlyi.
As a junior, Phillips was one of the United States' top-ranking athletes in both national and international competition.
From 1985 to 1987, she placed first in the all-around in every single American competition she entered, including the 1986
American Classic, the 1986 Olympic Festival and the 1987 U.S. Classic. At her first U.S. National Championships in 1985,
Phillips won the all-around title in the junior division; she repeated her success the following year, despite competing
with a broken wrist.
Phillips made her debut in international competition at the age of 12, at the 1984 Canada Classic, where she won a silver
medal on the floor exercise, a bronze on the uneven bars and placed seveth in the all-around. She continued to do well in
international meets over the next three years, placing sixth at the prestigious 1986 City of Popes, winning a vault silver
medal at the 1986 World Sports Fair and earning the all-around gold at the 1986 America Cup.
By 1986, Phillips was considered to be one of the United States' best hopes for a medal at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul,
and was the subject of a considerable amount of media attention. At the age of 14, she was featured on the cover of
the September 1, 1986 issue of Sports Illustrated magazine, which touted her as "The New Mary Lou" (in reference
to Mary Lou Retton). She was also interviewed for the 1987 ABC-TV documentary
Olga, Nadia and Mary Lou.
As Phillips moved into the senior ranks in 1987, she appeared to be on track for the Seoul Olympics. At that year's
national championships, she won her first and only senior all-around title. She earned an all-around silver medal at the
1987 Pan Am Games and won her second American Cup. Phillips was also nominated for the 1987 James E. Sullivan Award.
However, a growth spurt, the onset of puberty and conflicts with her coaches derailed Phillips' Olympic ambitions.
She briefly switched to SCATS in California to train with former Olympian Don Peters, however, she was unable to maintain
her previous level of gymnastics.
Phillips was able to earn a berth on the American team for the 1987 World Championships, but only placed 45th in the
all-around at the meet. She did, however, successfully submit an original balance beam mount, described as a "press
to side handstand, front walkover to side stand on both legs." The skill is now referred to as "the Phillips" in the
Code of Points and currently has a "D" difficulty rating. Another balance beam skill associated with Phillips was a reverse
planche, in which the gymnast arches her back from a handstand until her buttocks touch the top of her head.
In 1988, Phillips returned to the Károlyis. She placed 9th at the U.S. Nationals that spring. At the Olympic
Trials, she moved up one place to 8th and was named as the second alternate to the U.S. Olympic team. She trained with the
squad in America, but did not travel with them to Seoul.
Phillips attended Louisiana State University from 1990 to 1992, where she was a competitive cheerleader and a Delta
Gamma sister. After college, she moved to New York City where she coached gymnastics and performed in various film and
television projects, including 1994's Spitfire, a straight-to-video 007-spoof.
In 1996, Phillips participated in the Reese's Cup, a televised elite gymnastics exhibition. Three years later, in 1999,
she returned to the world of competitive gymnastics, placing 23rd at that year's U.S. National Championships. She competed
at the US Nationals again in 2000, placing 24th, before retiring.
Phillips currently lives in Troutman, North Carolina, owns a gymnastics facility in Statesville, North Carolina,
and is certified as an elite-level judge. She has spoken on several occasions about her experiences in gymnastics, most
recently in the 2003 CNN documentary Achieving The Perfect 10. She was inducted into the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2006.
For more information, visit her biography at www.usa-gymnastics.org.
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