Christa Tanella was born on July 13, 1991. She started gymnastics in 1995 at the age of four. Christa currently trains at WOGA with Valeri Liukin and Natalya Markova.

In 2003, she competed as a level eight. Christa placed second all-around at both the WOGA Classic and Parkette invite. She won the Metroplex Challenge. At the Texas State Championships, Christa won four golds. She placed eighth on vault. At the Regional Championships, she repeated her States performance but moved up to sixth on vault. Her final meet of the season was the IG Hall of Fame Competition. She won the all-around title. In 2004, Christa moved up to level ten. At the WOGA Classic and Presidential Classic, Christa finished third all-around. She won the title at the Metroplex Challenge. At the Level 10 State Championships, Christa finished third all-around. She ended her season at the Regional Championships.

Her first year as a junior international elite was in 2005. She qualified to the US Nationals by her performance at the US Classic. Christa earned valuable experience at Nationals. In the late fall, she travelled to Europe for the Voronin Cup. Christa won two bronze medals, one on beam and the other on floor. In 2006, she placed third all-around at the AOGC Invitational and Metroplex Challenge. Christa competed at the US Classic and the US National Championships. She barely missed a spot on the national team.

She moved up to the senior division in 2007. She won beam, floor and the all-around at the Metroplex Challenge. She competed on three events at the WOGA Classic. Her next meet was the American Classic. She finished second on bars and third all-around. At the US Classic, she placed second all-around. She ended her season at US Nationals with a twelfth place finish. She began 2008 by winning vault and the all-around at the WOGA Classic. She then won vault and bars at the AOGC Invitational. She qualified to Nationals via the May Elite Qualifier. She won bars and finished third on beam at the US Classic. She ended her season at Nationals. In November, Christa signed with the University of Georgia.

Christa opened 2009 with a second place finish at the Texas Prime Meet. She won uneven bars. At the WOGA Classic, she won her second consecutive all-around title. She also won floor. She finished fourth all-around at the American Classic. Her next meet will be the US Classic.

Fast Facts Name: Christa Tanella Birthday: July 13, 1991 Club: WOGA College: Georgia Official Website WOGA

MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS Full Scholarship to Georgia 2008: US National Qualifier 2007: US National Qualifier 2006: US National Qualifier 2005: US Nationals Competitor 2003: Level 8 Regional Champion

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Photos © Heather Mayenez & Lloyd Smith