By Romy Schwaiger

Every floor exercise is something special for Wynter Childers.

"I am doing my own choreography," the 14-year-old from Spearfish, S.D., says, "It normally takes one to two hours to create them."

This season, she is doing her routine to the soundtrack from The Pirates of the Caribbean.

Floor is her favorite event, "I really like to dance and tumble." But she says that bars is the most challenging event for her, as "I'm just not very flexible in my shoulders."

For Wynter, who trains at Spearfish Gymnastics with coaches Phil and Chris Summers, the biggest accomplishments in her gymnastics career were to compete at the Junior Olympic National Championships in Dallas two years ago, as well as to qualify to the Nastia Liukin Cup this year.

She earned a spot to compete in the finals at Madison Square Garden at the Lady Luck Invitational in Las Vegas, earning first place all-around in the junior division with a total score of 37.475 points. Wynter is really excited for the final: "My whole family is going with me to New York City, and we are staying the whole weekend - from Thursday until Tuesday."

Although she is not very superstitious, right before the competition begins, she crosses her fingers as the national anthem plays. And the night before, she rehearses her routines in her head.

She has already set goals for her gymnastics career: "I want to qualify for the Visa Championships in St. Louis in June, as well as for the World Championships next year."

Wynter also hopes to earn a full-ride scholarship at her favorite college: The University of Alabama.

"Alabama's gymnastics team is really good, and I like the location because I like it warm," Wynter says.

By Josh Weinfuss

When it comes to tumbling, Felicia Hano has it covered.

Nearly as long as she's been a gymnast, Hano has also been a tumbler.

In 2009, Hano competed in the Trampoline and Tumbling World Championships in St. Petersburg, Russia, and this year, the 13-year-old from San Gabriel relied on her background as a world-class tumbler to qualify for the Nastia Liukin Cup.

"I really love tumbling so I try to use some of those skills on floor and vault," she said. "In trampoline and tumbling the floor is a lot bouncier than in the artistic floor."

Hano has long looked up to Nastia Liukin, calling Liukin one of her role models.

But Hano will lean on her experience in Russia when she competes in Madison Square Garden. Since competing on an international stage, Hano said she's become more headstrong when she's competing.

"There are a lot of great girls but I learned how to just tone everybody out and concentrate on what I am doing and make everything perfect," Hano said. "It was awesome. It was a bit nerve racking but it was a lot of fun."

Hano says that being a tumbler has helped Hano become a better artistic gymnast. Some of the same tactics on the trampoline have transferred over to the various apparatuses.

"Tumbling is one of my stronger points so it makes some things a lot easier to do," Hano said.

Hano won't unveil a new routine in New York, instead choosing to improve on the skills she's been successful with. But she'll still rely on her tumbling background to put on a show in the Big Apple.

"They're pretty different," Hano said, "but similar in some ways."

By Josh Weinfuss

Call her the hometown favorite.

Until she was 8, Lauren Marinez grew up in Valley Stream, N.Y., a short 20-mile ride from Madison Square Garden. Her family is from New York, and when the Marinezes moved to Orlando, Fla., seven years ago, they left behind a contingent of relatives in the Big Apple.

They'll be in the stands in the Garden next week, however, to watch Lauren compete in the Nastia Liukin Cup for the second straight year.

"I'm just excited," Marinez said. "They haven't seen me in a while so hopefully everything will turn out well."

Being a New York native, Marinez understands the history of Madison Square Garden, thanks to her father, Charles, who has educated her on the importance of being able to perform under its iconic roof.

"Just the fact that it's in Madison Square Garden is a big deal," Marinez said. "I just know it's a really big arena, and it's really important if you compete there. I don't really know that much.

"He's just saying it's a really big deal, and you should be excited to compete there because not many people can say they competed in that arena."

About five or six or Marinez's aunts and uncles will watch her compete with less stress than in 2011.

Marinez tries to eliminate the pressure she puts on herself by going through her coach's advice in her head when she's competing.

"It's not as stressful so I learned I don't have to feel as stressed out about it," she said of the Nastia Liukin Cup. "I just think of going out there and doing my best and trying to hit the routines I've been practicing and whatever happens, happens."

By Josh Weinfuss

For years, Sydney McGlone couldn't get herself to perform on the bars. There was a mental block that prohibited her from physically executing her routine. She couldn't explain it. She didn't like it. But all it took was a change of scenery help her move past it.

"I hated doing dismounts and felt like I couldn't swing bars because I'm really small," McGlone said. "I just had a crazy mental block but I'm glad it's over with."

The block, McGlone said, was a result of belonging to a gym in which she often practiced alone instead of in a team atmosphere. When her family moved from Reynoldsburg, Ohio, to Dublin, Ohio, both suburbs of Columbus that are separated by only 25 minutes, McGlone found a gym that suited her better. And it ended up making a world of difference.

"I learned a lot at my old gym," she said. "but now that I am with a team, I have people to look up to and it has given me more confidence."

It didn't take McGlone long to realize the benefits of having teammates.

"I always thought I had an advantage working by myself, and then when I finally got the team concept I realize how much they mean to me. They are practically my family. We are always together. I can go to them for anything, even if it's not gymnastics. It's pretty great."

At her new gym, McGlone performs with a newfound love of the sport. She was always known for her floor routine, she said, to the point where fans could watch her compete and instantly know who it was.

Now, her routine has evolved and she's grown as a gymnast. And with that has come newfound fame.

"Now I'm an all around gymnast," McGlone said. "Now people know who I am. People come up to me and ask me if I'm Sydney McGlone. It's pretty crazy. It's a little overwhelming, but it's the good kind of overwhelming. It pushes me to be better because now I know people are looking out for me. I like it."

By Romy Schwaiger

Charlie Owens' biggest accomplishment was to come back after her injury. Charlie had a disease called osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) in both of her elbows, where the bone under the joint surface weakens and becomes injured. It then damages the blood vessels going to the bone. Without blood flow, a small section of bone dies.

Her doctors said that she wouldn't be able to continue with gymnastics. But, she found a doctor that was able to fix her elbows.

She had two surgeries, the first one in 2007 for her left elbow, the second one in 2008 for her right elbow. "I had to sit out for two whole years," the 17-year-old from Alta Loma, Calif., says.

Although she was injured, she still went to the gym and did conditioning for her lower body. She even practiced and competed on the floor without her arms. "I competed floor twice, but just at smaller meets. I was super excited to just be able to compete again."

Charlie is a Level 10 gymnast at Charter Oak Gliders in Covina, Calif., where Beth and Stephen Rybacki are her coaches. "I like to push myself," she says, "and I wanted to have a full-ride college scholarship."

At first, Charlie wanted to attend Stanford, but then, changed her mind and verbally committed to Berkeley in 2010 right before Christmas. "Berkeley is a really good fit, and it feels like home for me."

She qualified for the Nastia Liukin Cup at the Gliders Invitational, where she won vault, bars, floor and the all-around with a total score of 38.325 points.

She says that Nastia Liukin is an important role model for her, but her biggest role models have always been her parents, her grandmother and her coaches. "My grandmother is my biggest fan, she was at every single one of my gymnastics meets."

In her free time, she loves to go shopping with her mother and grandmother. "We all have the same style and when you see us, you know that we're related."

By Romy Schwaiger

Baely Rowe's family has always been into sports. Her sister, Bree, earned a soccer scholarship from the University of Oregon and her brother, Kelyn, was drafted third overall by the Major League Soccer team New England Revolution.

"My whole family is a soccer family," the 16-year-old says. Baely herself used to play soccer until 8th grade. She then chose gymnastics over soccer, as she was becoming a high-level gymnast. "But sometimes, my family and I still go out and play soccer together."

Baely practices 25 hours a week at Auburn Gymnastics Center in Auburn, WA, under coaches Brent Phelps and Peter Flores. This will be her sixth year as a Level 10 gymnast.

"It took a lot of time, work and dedication to get where I am now," she says about her gymnastics career. "I really love the sport, as well as my teammates and my coaches. I wouldn't know what to do without gymnastics."

In 2009, Baely finished third all-around at Junior Olympic Nationals and qualified to National Team. In 2010, she was the JO National Uneven Bars Champion. She also lists qualifying to the Nastia Liukin Cup and her scholarship to Utah as her most rewarding accomplishments.

She qualified for the Nastia Liukin Cup in mid-February at the Charity Choice Invitational in Tacoma, Wash., where she took first place in vault, bars, floor and in the all-around. She is looking forward to going to New York City because she will meet her role model Nastia Liukin: "She is a beautiful gymnast and very elegant."

Baely is a junior at Auburn Riverside High School and has verbally committed to the University of Utah, which she will attend on a full-ride scholarship starting in fall 2013. "I chose Utah because they were really interested in me when I was there, and I love the mountains."