Shilese Jones

Shilese Jones (born July 26, 2002, Seattle, Washington, U.S.) is an American gymnast who has won six world championship medals. Her signature event is the uneven bars, though she has enjoyed success in all disciplines. Known for her perseverance, Jones has had to overcome injuries, personal loss, and professional setbacks.

Early life

Jones grew up in Auburn, Washington, with her parents, Latrice Bryant and Sylvester Jones, Jr., and two siblings. Shilese Jones, who was called “Shi” by family and friends, was introduced to gymnastics at age 4 in 2006, when her parents enrolled her in classes. Jones showed a talent for the sport, and when she was age 12, the family moved to Ohio so she could train with coach Christian Gallardo.

As a junior-level gymnast, Jones gained recognition as she placed in the top 10 in a number of national competitions. Her first named element, aptly called “the Jones,” was added to the Junior Olympic Code of Points in 2014. The move is a one-and-a-half twisting double tuck, in which the first flip includes a twist and the second is a front tuck out.

In 2018 Jones, who is 5 feet 3 inches (1.6 meters) tall, began competing at the senior level. At that year’s American Classic, she took first place in the all-around event, vault, and floor exercise. Also in 2018 she made her debut at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships, where her best finish was fifth place in the all-around event, and she earned a team gold medal at the Senior Pan American Championships.

Jones, who was homeschooled, finished high school in 2020. She was accepted by the University of Florida but elected to defer enrollment in order to pursue her gymnastics career.

Bouncing back

In 2021 Jones faced a series of unexpected setbacks that threatened to take her away from elite competition indefinitely. In January she suffered a fractured back and foot in a car accident, resulting in a monthslong recovery. Although she was able to compete at the U.S. Olympic trials later that year, she finished in 10th place overall and failed to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games (delayed until 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic). In December 2021 Jones’s father died after a long battle with kidney disease. At this low point, she considered moving on from gymnastics. But the memory of her father and what he had hoped she would achieve propelled her forward.

Jones had a breakout year in 2022. At the U.S. Classic she won a gold medal in the uneven bars and silver medals in the all-around and floor exercise. Her success continued at the U.S. championships, where she captured a gold medal in the uneven bars and floor exercise and a silver in the all-around. Also in 2022 Jones made an impressive debut at the world gymnastics championships. There she finished in second place in the uneven bars and the all-around and helped the United States win the team title.

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Jones was subsequently sidelined with another set of injuries, this time to her shoulder and ankle. After a 10-month recovery, she returned in August 2023, competing in the U.S. Gymnastics Championships. Despite her lengthy absence, Jones captured three medals: gold in the uneven bars, silver in the all-around, and bronze in the floor exercise. A month later at the world championships, she helped the U.S. women’s team edge out Brazil and France to win an unprecedented seventh consecutive world team title. Jones once again had strong performances in the all-around and uneven bars, winning a bronze medal in both events.

Olympic dreams

Jones was widely expected earn a spot on the U.S. women’s gymnastics team competing at the 2024 Paris Games. Although a shoulder injury forced her to withdraw from the 2024 U.S. national championships—the official qualifying event for the Olympic trials—Jones successfully petitioned to participate in the upcoming trials. However, she was forced to withdraw from the trials after injuring her knee, and she was not selected for the U.S. Olympic team.