Jordan Chiles began her final NCAA Gymnastics season with a bang. The UCLA senior didn’t miss a beat in her team’s season opener on Saturday, placing first on all four events and winning the all-around title while leading UCLA to victory.
The wins came at a highly anticipated quad meet hosted by the University of Washington, where the No. 4 Bruins faced the Washington Huskies, the No. 20 California Bears, and the No. 17 Oregon State Beavers.
The meet, dubbed the “Best of the West,” marked the first sold-out crowd for the Washington gymnastics program in its 50 years of competition.
Despite the worthy opponents, Chiles emerged victorious across the board.
The 24-year-old opened her 2026 season on the floor with the Bruins squad, where she debuted a new floor routine for a team-leading 9.925. Not long after finishing third on Dancing with the Stars, Chiles showcased her characteristic charisma with a musical mashup of songs from Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and more.
Chiles then went to the vault, where she nailed a spectacular and highly difficult double Yurchenko vault, an upgrade from her 2025 program. She earned another 9.9+ score.
On bars – the event where Chiles is the reigning NCAA champion – she continued her winning ways, nailing her releases and sticking her dismount to tie with Cal’s Tonya Paulsson for the bars title.
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Closing the meet on beam, Chiles first supported UCLA rookie and former elite training teammate Tiana Sumanasekera. Sumanasekera, a 2024 Olympic alternate, scored a massive 9.95 in her freshman debut on the event, drawing immediate tears and massive celebration from the UCLA team.
Chiles sprang from her position to embrace Sumanasekera, only to quickly shift gears to prepare for her own routine, two athletes later. After the huge 9.95 from her World Champions Centre teammate, Jordan went one better. Chiles again stuck her dismount, earning a near-perfect 9.975 (10.0 from one judge).
With the near-perfect score, Chiles secured a nation-best 39.725 in her 2026 all-around debut to lead the Bruins to the quad-meet win.
The winning all-around score at the 2025 NCAA Championships was 39.7125. Not a bad start for the two-time Olympian.
Next Up For Chiles and UCLA
While the Bruins celebrate their season-opening win, they will endure a tough, nationally televised test in week two. The Bruins will face off against the defending NCAA Champion No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 LSU, and No. 5 Utah at the Sprouts Farmers Market Collegiate Quad on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 4:00 p.m. ET on ABC.
With five of the nation’s top teams in attendance, the meet is highly regarded as an early-season preview of the national championship.