By Mason Kelley
GoHuskies.com
Long before she became a coach. Years before she ever thought about working at Washington. And even before she was a three-time national champion at Michigan, Elise Ray almost gave up gymnastics.
After competing in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia, Ray thought about walking away. After a “bittersweet” experience on the world stage, the bronze medalist considered a change.
“My Olympic experience was pretty awful, actually,” said Washington's new gymnastics coach, whose hiring was announced Wednesday. “It was really hard, a lot of things went wrong. It was really tough.
“I didn't really think I wanted to do gymnastics anymore. I just wanted to be done.”
The U.S. Olympic team finished fourth that year, but the gymnasts were awarded a medal a decade later after it was learned China competed with underage athletes.
That was part of the reason Ray described the experience as “bittersweet.” She has been competing since she was 6, so it would have been understandable if the 19-year-old tried something new.
But, Michigan offered her an opportunity to continue competing and she decided she wasn't quite ready to give up the sport. That decision put her on a path that eventually led her to Washington.
“It was so healing,” said Ray, who is replacing her mentor and former coach, Joanne Bowers. “It relit the passion for gymnastics. I was so thankful I was there. I had the time of my life.”
During her time in Ann Arbor, Mich., she tied for an all-around title (2001), claiming a gold medal on the beam in 2002 and on bars in 2004. By the time she graduated, she had the most All-American honors in program history (14).
“They (Michigan's gymnastics program) welcomed me with open arms,” Ray said. “I learned how to compete for others. I no longer cared about what I was doing. I just wanted the team to do well and that was a very new concept for me that I just loved.”
For three of her four years at Michigan, Bowers was her coach.
“She played a huge role in just being there for me and teaching me how to love gymnastics, how to compete for my team,” Ray said. “She was very much a mentor for me, in addition to being a great coach.”
Ray's collegiate career was so cathartic, she now strives to give her athletes a similar experience.
“When I said I want my girls to have the best four years of their lives, that's because that's the way I feel about my experience,” she said. “I want to pay it forward.”
However, as much as she enjoyed competing in college, she didn't jump straight into coaching. When she graduated, she still wanted to perform, so she moved to Las Vegas.
She worked for Cirque Du Soleil, performing on the shows “Love” and “O.”
“Oh my gosh, it was unbelievable,” Ray said. “I don't think there's a better place than being on stage, performing in front of people every single night. It's an amazing feeling. I had the time of my life.”
While she was in Las Vegas, she received a call from Bowers. The coach asked if the former gymnast was interested in coaching. The timing of the call was serendipitous, because Ray was starting to think about a way back to gymnastics.
“I took it as a sign,” Ray said. “It was pretty clear within the first couple of years that I loved it. It's in my bones.”
Ray joined the Huskies' staff in 2011. She fell in love with the job. She fell in love with the university. She fell in love with Seattle.
When asked about what she has learned from Bowers during her time as an assistant, Ray was quick to answer.
“The way she cares about her program and cares about her girls,” she said. “Every single coach anywhere should mirror that.”
So here she is, presented with a dream job, one she never knew she wanted until the opportunity presented itself. Now she has big goals. She wants to build on the foundation Bowers established.
“We want our athletes to be better when they leave than when they come in,” Ray said.
She expects to build a program capable of competing among the nation's best.
“I'm so thrilled to get this job,” she said. “I realized a couple of years in that this is what I really wanted. This is where I want to be. I love it here. I love Seattle so much. I love the team. I'm just really, really excited about our potential.”
