From backpacking around the world with the intention to bid goodbye to gymnastics to winning an NCAA title a year later - Helen Hu's story

Helen Hu, the talented artistic gymnast of the University of Missouri gymnastics program, recently clinched the NCAA Championship title in the balance beam event. The Missouri women's gymnastics team has earned nine WCGA All-American honors and has reached the NCAA Championship Final.

Helen Hu is a three-time All-Southeastern Conference gymnast and is a senior competing in her fifth year with the Missouri Tigers. She decided to retire after her 2023 season as she suffered from spondylolysis, a type of stress fracture in the vertebrae of the lower back.

After her graduation, Hu decided to embark on a world tour with her sister, Elaine Hu. She travelled to multiple countries and returned to the United States in June 2024. She then went to Colombia to be the bridesmaid for her former teammate Adalayna Hufendiek's wedding.

During her time in Missouri, she stayed with Jocelyn Moore, a senior of the Missouri Tigers. She accompanied Moore to attend a training session and meet her former teammates. There, she decided to give the beam a try. She found that even after gap of one year, she was able to execute her aerial routes with finesse. Later, she was informed by the head coach Shannon Welker, that she had a year of eligibility left. Considering her comeback, Hu mentioned, as per ESPN's D'Arcy Maine,

"If someone had told me last year I would be back on the team, I probably would have laughed in their face. I was done, I was happy with my life. I had accomplished enough and closed that chapter. I missed it, but not in a 'I wish I could go back' kind of way. I had moved on... But now, I'm here and my motto all season has just been to have fun."

During her freshman season, she was named to the All-SEC team, the Conference's Freshman team, and was also the SEC's Event Specialist of the Year.

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Helen Hu reveals her top sports apart from gymnastics

In Picture: Helen Hu at the NCAA Regionals - Seattle - Source: Getty

Helen Hu is a prominent artistic gymnast and has earned numerous accolades throughout her collegiate career with the Missouri gymnastics program. During a recent interview, she mentioned the sports she would choose other than gymnastics. She said:

"I always wanted to play volleyball just because it looks like such a fun team sport. It's one of the few sports I enjoy watching because its really cool seeing how the group of them like work together as if they share one brain. Either that or figure skating. I actually did that for a couple of years and I had to drop it because gymnastics kind of took over. But I use to love gliding on the ice."

So far, the notable artistic gymnast has received three All-American honours in the balance beam event.