Chalked Up (Updated Edition)

My Life in Elite Gymnastics

By: Jennifer Sey

Narrated by: Eileen Stevens

Dreams of becoming the next Nadia Comaneci led Jennifer Sey to become a gymnast at the age of six. Her early success and love of the sport propelled her and her family to great sacrifice so that she could become a National Team member and one of America’s elite gymnasts by age 11. But as she set her sights higher, Jennifer began to change, setting her mental and physical health aside in the name of winning. The coaching culture of extreme cruelty drove Jennifer to self-harming behaviors, extreme injuries, an eating disorder, and depression and the adults in her life who were supposed to protect her failed to intervene, swept up in the dream of an Olympic berth.

Now Sey reveals the tarnish beneath the gold medals in this powerful portrait of intensity and drive, and the way that adults set children’s needs aside in the name of winning. Abusive coaches, manipulative business leaders, and parents blinded by the glory of gold forced Jennifer from the sport to find her own way back to mental health, self-worth, and happiness.

Jennifer’s personal tale exposes the dark side of sport, now well documented in the film she produced, Athlete A. Her personal journey provides hope for those young athletes struggling to find their way back from abuse and neglect at the hands of adults who put their own needs ahead of children’s.

©2008 Jennifer Sey. Introduction © 2020 by Jennifer Sey (P)2021 Blackstone Publishing

Open and lived experience shared for gymnastics families

Important to share experiences so we all learn without having to go through same trials. Thank u Jennifer!

Her truth

Very good ,,, so very sad that coaches are like this, the abuse, shame more abuse. Very sad

Interesting inside look at gymnastics

I liked hearing the challenges and triumphs of a young competitive gymnast’s life, and found I couldn’t put the book down. I appreciate her honesty in uncovering what many outside the gymnastics world had already suspected- the physical and emotional abuse of young girls. The narration was clear and warm. Very much enjoyed it!

Excellent Memoir

The narration of this book was excellent. The narrator clearly understood the material.

The content of the book is very interesting and still relevant, despite its age. The author does a nice job of bridging the time gap before and after the main content. Interesting and scary insight into the world of elite gymnastics, with clear trends that apply to other competitive sports.