Bella Cinelli

The Eighth Stand

“Don’t forget to keep your legs straight on that front-tuck step out Bell!” coach Jenn yelled from across the blue spring floor. It was a brisk winter, back in 2015. I belonged to Champions United Gymnastics Academy where I was a JOGA Level 4. Our first competition of the season at TNT Gymnastics. I was warming up my second tumbling pass. A front-tuck step out, cartwheel, round-off back handspring step out. I hear Jenn’s voice in the back of my head, reminding me of what I must correct as I ran and hurdled into the tumbling pass. “Keep those legs straight Bella, keep them straight.” I punch into the front-tuck preparing for the step out, my first leg coming down as straight as ever, almost too straight. Gravity pulled me back down to the hard blue floor, my first leg coming down completely locked, and POP. Before my right leg had the chance to come down, it was already too late. One minute I was rotating through the air trying to perfect my pass, and the next I find myself lying down in the middle of the mat in the fetal position, holding my left knee to my chest. I didn’t know it then, but this was just the very beginning of my 5-year fight.