UCLA gymnastics coach who trained a viral sensation sees a bright future for the sport

UCLA gymnastics coach who trained a viral sensation sees a bright future for the sport originally appeared on goodmorningamerica.com

Behind those viral floor routines, perfect 10 scores and NCAA National Championship titles lies the hard work and dedication of UCLA’s student athletes.

But now, the woman who has been at the helm of the university’s celebrated gymnastics team for the past 37 years is saying goodbye.

Valerie Condos Field, or "Miss Val," as she hopes she is affectionately known, will retired from her position as head coach of UCLA’s gymnastics team at the end of the month.

"While I love, love, love my job at UCLA, there’s not been one day that I haven’t thoroughly enjoyed it, I need more time in my day to work on my bucket list," Field told ABC News.

Field, who announced her retirement to the team in September, said she started thinking about retiring after a breast cancer diagnosis four years ago.

"When I got breast cancer … I chose to use my time in chemotherapy as my chemo spa. ... A spa is someplace you go to get better and get fortified, so I used it as my time to work on my bucket list," she said.

(MORE: UCLA gymnast Katelyn Ohashi scores another perfect 10 floor routine)

Fields started her UCLA career as a 22-year-old dance coach for the gymnastics team, but was asked to take over as head coach eight years later.

"I said...‘I don’t know the first thing about gymnastics.’ And she said, ‘I’ve observed how you’ve worked with the students athletes. … I love how you are tough with them but you’re compassionate. … I trust you’ll figure the rest out,'" Field said.

Reputation and recognition

The UCLA gymnastics team attracts athletes from all over the world. Field said it's because of the university’s recognizable name.

But since becoming head coach, Field recruited former elite gymnasts and Olympic medalists to the team, such as current team members Madison Kocian of the 2016 U.S. Olympic team and Kyla Ross of the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team.

During her time at UCLA, Field’s team has won seven NCAA National Championships titles.

"For all of those championships, even the ones that we didn’t win but the one that I can leave and remember back on with no regret, in all of those teams I remember about a month before the championships came feeling like my hands were off the steering wheel and the athletes were taking ownership of their team," Fields said. "And I’ve always told them that when I feel that, that’s when I know the magic is going to happen."

That magic is also what has made moments like Katelyn Ohashi’s floor routine go viral.

(MORE: Disgraced gymnastics doctor's alleged victims file new lawsuits)

"It’s interesting that everybody was so excited this year about Katelyn’s floor routine going viral and they say it’s because she scored a perfect 10. That’s not the reason, because the year before, her routine went viral, and scored a 9.95. So it’s not about the illusion of perfection as much as it is seeing this young woman do incredibly difficult gymnastics skills that a normal person can’t even fathom," Field said.

Out in the light

Despite viral-inspired interest in the sport, the past year has been difficult for gymnastics in the U.S. The sport was rocked by the scandal of former USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar, who was convicted in 2018 of 10 counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct after admitting to using his position as a doctor to sexually abuse young patients.

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