Since premiering her new floor routine, Olympic medalist and Bruin Jordan Chiles has been riding a surge of emotions. Her choreography has gone viral, and she placed first in back-to-back meets which helped push her to the top of the national ranks with multiple all-around individual titles.
She had to wait until Sunday, the fourth meet of the season, to finally earn a magical perfect 10.
“I’ve tried everything,” Chiles said before her triumphant moment during a team victory at Michigan State. “The scores are the scores. This is the beginning of the process of the judges getting back into the flow of things.”
Instead of focusing on a matter she has no control over, Chiles said she’s having fun and doing the best she can every time she hits the mat.
“Is every single time going to be perfect?” Chiles asks. “Probably not, but I’m going to make it as perfect as I can.”
The choreography was one of the hardest elements to figure out — topping her last viral floor routine that featured Prince’s music initially felt impossible. During her run to the 2024 Paris Olympics, she heavily featured Beyoncé in her floor routine and received a bouquet of flowers from the legend. Chiles’ final UCLA floor routine started to click once she realized it wasn’t about surpassing herself, but rather showcasing what the future holds and inspiring young gymnasts to be themselves.
“It’s being authentic to who you are and authentic in ways that you want to shine and do what you have to do,” Chiles said.
The music supporting her performance includes icons Janet Jackson, Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder and Tina Turner, a deliberate choice by Chiles. She wanted to highlight the legacy of the uniform she’s worn for the last four years as a Bruin.
Her experience on “Dancing With the Stars” during the summer, when she finished third, broadened her palette of dance styles. Being around talented dancers helped her see what dance elements could be added to her floor routine, said BJ Das, associate head coach and choreographer of the Bruins.
“She’s like a sponge,” Das said. “She learns quickly and she observes and she really takes in the world around her.”
When they came together to devise the last routine of her college career, they wanted to create a piece that would be timeless and engage the audience. Chiles wanted to bring people together through joy, passion and energy with music everybody would love.
“We wanted people on their feet, getting into it,” Das said. “… I think that’s always been her mark, on the sport of gymnastics … just really being herself.”
Collaborating came naturally for Chiles and Das. Through their years together, the trust they built turned the process into a fun experience that came together faster than expected.
“When I bring her ideas, she’s generally on board and she’ll have her own ideas and we just feed off each other,” Das said.
The work doesn’t stop between competitions. Throughout the week they focus on refining Chiles’ form and sticking landings as they fine-tune her overall performance. The routine is advanced, requiring significant endurance and cardio training.
Das also works on making the presentation crisper and sharper each week.
“The performance for her is so natural that it’s always gonna be there,” Das said. “I just want the movement quality to keep elevating as the season goes on and she gets more and more comfortable with the routine.”
UCLA gymnasts Nola Matthews and Tiana Sumanasekera cheer as Jordan Chiles lands a jump during her floor routine at Pauley Pavilion on Jan. 17.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
Any time she hits the mat, Das wants Chiles’ performance to shine a light on her impact on the sport of gymnastics. She wants the routine to exemplify Chiles’ voice in the sport — showing the importance of versatility and staying true to herself.
From her air guitar movement during the Stevie Wonder section to the shimmy during the Tina Turner section, every movement in the exercise captures her personality.
“I hope that this routine just emphasizes the freedom that you can have while being in the sport of gymnastics,” Das said.
Chiles’ floor routine allows her to command the attention of everyone in the building. Fans in the stands all get on their feet when it’s her turn to compete. She’s the anchor of the UCLA floor rotation. Her teammates long ago memorized her routine and enthusiastically cheer her on every time she competes. The audience roars approval after she executes a fun dance sequence or a difficult tumbling sequence. Her coaches grin and join the crowd cheering for Chiles.
“I’ve always wanted to dance and I’m an entertainer,” Chiles said. “I love entertaining people not just because of my sport, but just because I know I have the opportunity to really show the world that there are other sides of me. I am more than just a gymnast.”
UCLA coach Janelle McDonald knew Chiles eventually would clinch her elusive perfect 10 as the Bruins work to improve their scores with an eye on winning a national championship.
“Jordan rises when the pressure comes,” McDonald said.
What a difference a week makes
UCLA men’s basketball coach Mick Cronin went from accepting responsibility for the Bruins’ blowout loss at Ohio State to stringing together back-to-back wins over then-No. 4 Purdue and Northwestern.
What changed?
The Bruins’ defense has improved despite star Skyy Clark’s absence while he recovers from a hamstring injury.
“If you don’t give up layups and dunks, you’ve got a chance to stop people,” Cronin said. “However you accomplish that. … We’ve been trying to adjust defensively how we do things. Stuff that obviously to the lay person you might not see. … We have some weaknesses that we have to hide.”
Whatever Cronin implemented besides leaving his starters on defense for an entire practice, it worked well. UCLA limited Purdue to 28 points in the paint and Northwestern to 24 points in the paint en route to much-needed wins.
Improving while stacking up wins
UCLA women’s basketball coach Cori Close is trying to keep her team focused on improving amid a 13-game win streak, including an 80-46 rout of Northwestern on Sunday.
“Really focusing with our players [on] how good can their attention to detail can be when the score doesn’t hold you accountable to that,” Close said. “… I’m just looking for how are we going to continue to get better? We did get better [Sunday]. We only had four live-ball turnovers of our 13. We obviously need to get that number down in terms of offensive fouls and travels. But I do think we made some steps in the right direction.”
The No. 3 Bruins (19-1, 9-0 Big Ten) play at Illinois (15-5, 5-4) on Wednesday before a big test Sunday against No. 10 Iowa (18-2, 9-0) at 1 p.m. at Pauley Pavilion.
Survey time
UCLA men’s basketball coach Mick Cronin has had a lot of success with the Bruins, but his yelling on the sideline also has a few detractors. So this week’s question: Do you support Mick Cronin as coach?
In case you missed it
Jordan Chiles delivers perfect 10 on floor, helps UCLA gymnasts beat Michigan State
Gabriela Jaquez leads No. 3 UCLA past Northwestern for its 13th straight victory
Tyler Bilodeau and Trent Perry keep UCLA perfect at home with win over Northwestern
UCLA’s freshman gymnasts playing vital role in the team’s strong start
UCLA women dominate in near 50-point rout of Purdue
Donovan Dent and Tyler Bilodeau lead UCLA to stunning upset of No. 4 Purdue
Will UCLA be forced to stay at the Rose Bowl? Legal scholars weigh in on the case
No. 3 UCLA women crush No. 12 Maryland for their 11th straight win
‘Everyone is intertwined in what’s going on.’ How a tiny coal town shaped UCLA’s Bob Chesney
Unlocking the future
My name is Iliana Limón Romero and I’m the assistant managing editor for Sports at the L.A. Times. As you may have noticed, longtime UCLA beat reporter Ben Bolch left The Times and signed off from this newsletter. We remain committed to UCLA coverage and providing you with a vibrant, insightful newsletter every Monday. If you have any questions or requests, email me at iliana.limonromero@latimes.com or contact our Sports newsletters editor listed below.
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