Honored by the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame posthumously, Nard Cazzell is a lifetime member of USA Trampoline & Tumbling. He was recently inducted into the World Acrobatics Society Gallery of Honor.
Born and educated in Amarillo, Texas, Cazzell attended Texas A&M University, where he was an Olympic hopeful in swimming and diving. After a stint in the Navy during World War II, Cazzell coached the sport of Trampoline at the Maverick Boys Club in Amarillo. Not only did some of his pupils do well nationally on the trampoline, but some of his students also became champion divers.
Cazzell was instrumental in designing the first competition trampoline with George Nissen. In his over 40 years teaching boys and girls trampoline and gymnastics, Cazzell holds the record for the most national champions trained by one coach. Cazzell was one of the founding fathers of the U.S. Association of Independent Gymnastics Clubs (USAIGC) in the 1970s. In 1985, he received both the National Tumbling Coach of the Year and the National Trampoline Coach of the Year awards.
Once labeled a pioneer in the sport, Cazzell is considered a major factor in the acceptance of trampoline in the Olympics today. Nard Cazzell was dedicated to the sport of gymnastics for over 40 years, yet with Nard, his athletes always came first.
