"The theme was make your basics really good, then the rest of your gymnastics would be better, too," said Steve Cornelison, ACPR Gymnastics head coach.
After practicing for several hours, the girls, coaches and parents gathered around Dawes. She even brought a gold medal for the girls to see and try on.
"When she talked about her Olympic quest and her personal experience, she could relate to them about her parents, hurting in practice, about overcoming her fears," Cornelison said. "Those are things kids relate to because everyone has problems or issues they run into."
Dawes, 31, is now a motivational speaker, part-time coach and gymnastics clinician who conducts self-esteem and fitness workshops. She occasionally misses competing.
"I was in the sport for 18 years," Dawes said. "I think I got all I could out of it. It's great to get that adrenaline rush, but I get that now in motivational speaking."
Dawes encourages young gymnasts and frequently emphasizes mind over matter.
"You've got to make sure you're controlling your thoughts and your mind. When you're preparing yourself and start to think, what if I fall and injure myself, you're talking yourself out of it," she said. "I want kids to realize they have control, and that control starts from what's going on in their minds."
After the question-and-answer session, Dawes signed autographs on the girls' leotards and handed out notebooks that were personalized and had tips she wrote after watching their floor exercises.
"It was cool to meet a champion," said Christina, a third-grader. "She was nice and taught me a lot of things. She told me to straighten my leg sometimes when I did stuff."
madison.park@baltsun.com
