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Gymnast Alice Kinsella is undertaking a highly uncommon journey that has even attracted academic attention in the form of a university research paper. When she arrives at the British Gymnastics training centre in Lilleshall, attention initially centers not on her, but on her infant son Parker, who is just a few months old and delighting in the familiar attention from teammates and coaches. However, the focus soon shifts back to Kinsella herself. Although she is not introducing a new gymnastics move, she is making history by aiming to become the first British artistic gymnast to return to elite-level competition after giving birth.
While many athletes across various sports have resumed top-tier competition after becoming mothers, this is a rarity in gymnastics due to the critical importance of pelvic floor and core strength—areas significantly affected by pregnancy. Kinsella, who earned a bronze medal in the team event at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and holds two European titles, impressively took just around three to four weeks off following the birth of Parker in summer. In a recent discussion with BBC Sport, the 24-year-old shared insights into her recovery and training regime.
Kinsella has always intended to balance motherhood with her elite gymnastics career, carefully timing pregnancy between Olympic cycles. Once pregnant early in 2025, she immediately halted training on apparatus like bars, floor, and vault due to the high risk of injury from falls affecting her abdomen. Under medical guidance, her training was adapted to focus on maintaining strength and conditioning, emphasizing core, upper and lower body strength, mobility, and flexibility, while avoiding high-intensity or high-impact exercises. British Gymnastics’ senior conditioning coach Ben Young noted that this period was used to address previous physical weaknesses such as ankle stability, shoulder strength, and grip, enabling her to maintain as much strength as possible safely.
Kinsella credits her gymnastics background for her surprisingly rapid return to physical activity after childbirth, though she acknowledged this might not have been feasible had she undergone a cesarean section. She noted, “When I got back [to training], my strength had obviously dropped a little bit, but it was still kind of there. I didn’t feel too bad in myself.” NHS guidelines advise women to begin gentle exercise when they feel ready following a straightforward birth but recommend waiting until after the six-week postnatal check before starting high-impact activities. For those who exercised regularly before pregnancy and feel fit, earlier resumption of exercise may be possible under medical advice.
Throughout pregnancy and postpartum, Kinsella experienced notable changes in her body. She humorously remarked, “My hips are wider and I haven’t tried on a leotard yet,” adding that she does not plan to do so soon. She also described the challenge of coping with reduced abdominal power caused by diastasis recti—where the abdominal muscles separate to accommodate the growing uterus. According to NHS information, this muscle separation usually resolves within about two months, but Kinsella has had to work diligently to rebuild core strength to return to training on the apparatus. She currently trains three days weekly with substantial childcare support from her partner Will and her mother, and manages daytime naps to compensate for disrupted sleep at night.
Kinsella is cautious about setting a firm timeline for her full comeback but hopes to be back in top form by the end of 2026, coinciding with the World Championships in Rotterdam. The 2027 World Championships in China will serve as qualifiers for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and follow a busy summer featuring the European Championships and Commonwealth Games. She is taking her recovery “day by day” and remains optimistic, stating, “If I am back before then [Worlds], that is great, but if not then I won’t be too stressed.” Ben Young pointed out that their current challenge is in fact restraining her progress, as she is advancing faster than expected—a testament to her elite athleticism. He also expressed hope that Kinsella’s experience could pave the way for other gymnasts and athletes to return to elite competition after childbirth.
To better understand and support this unique return, British Gymnastics is collaborating with Dr Julie Gooderick from the University of Kent, who is conducting research into postpartum athletic comebacks through a study entitled “Returning to sport postpartum: a case study of an elite gymnast.” Dr Gooderick explained, “For athletes, mid-career maternity leave is still not normalised, and there is a real lack of research around best practice for returning to sport postpartum.” The research will track an array of data points including physical testing such as jump performance, trunk strength, and force production, as well as monitoring sleep patterns, hormonal profiles through blood tests, and psychological wellbeing over time. This comprehensive approach aims not only to optimize support for Kinsella throughout her return but also to provide valuable guidance to coaches and practitioners assisting other athletes navigating similar journeys in the future
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
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