Olympic Gold Medalist, Fierce Five Gymnast Jordyn Wieber Named Arkansas Head Coach
Olympic gold medalist Jordyn Wieber was hired as Arkansas' head women's gymnastics coach on Tuesday, the school announced.
Wieber previously served as an assistant coach at UCLA and helped guide the Bruins to the 2018 national championship. She also won a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics in London with Team USA, playing a key role in the United States' "Fierce Five."
“I am honored to be joining the Razorback Family as the head gymnastics coach at the University of Arkansas,” Wieber said in a statement on Tuesday. “Throughout my life, gymnastics has provided me some extraordinary opportunities, from traveling the world and competing for my country at the Olympics to coaching alongside one of the legends of our sport at UCLA...I am excited about the future of Razorback Gymnastics and am looking forward to working together with our student-athletes to compete at the highest level of collegiate gymnastics.”
Wieber will replace former head coach Mark Cook, who retired in April after 17 years as the head of Arkansas' program.
“It was clear from the beginning of this process, that Jordyn had a definitive plan to take our program to an elite level and wanted to be the head coach at the University of Arkansas," Arkansas vice chancellor and director of athletics Hunter Yurachek said. "For the past 17 years, Mark Cook built the Razorback gymnastics program from the ground up. I am confident that Jordyn will not only build on that foundation but will also serve as a recognizable face for our program and for the sport of gymnastics.”
Wieber testified against former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar in January 2018. She was the fourth member of the Fierce Five to do so, joining Gabby Douglas, McKayla Maroney and Aly Raisman. Kyla Ross became the last of the quintet to speak out against Nassar in August 2018.
