This year, Missouri gymnastics head coach Shannon Welker presented Jackie Terpak an assistant coaching opportunity. Previously,  Terpak was the volunteer assistant coach for the University of Arkansas gymnastics and worked directly under Olympic champions Jordyn Wieber and Kyla Ross. Terpak said their guidance was helpful in preparing her for her transition to official assistant at MU. 

“It has been a really smooth transition. I am really happy I ended up being here,” Terpak said. “It wasn’t something I was necessarily looking for but, Shannon Welker reached out and got me out here.” 

During the beginning of Terpak’s career at Missouri, she has been able to mesh well with the other members of the gymnastics staff. Most importantly, Terpak was able to bring a new perspective to the team. 

“The staff is so well balanced,” Terpak said. “My biggest strength is their biggest weaknesses and vice versa, so we balance each other out really well and work well together.” 

Aside from assisting Welker in coaching duties, she serves as the choreographer for the floor exercise routines. So far, Terpak has made an impact on the team’s floor choreography — specifically by elevating the performance side of the routines. Terpak explained that choreography has been a skill she’s honed in on since a young age. 

“I have been choreographing since I was 14,” Terpak said. “I did it in my club gym, throughout college, at Arkansas and now here. I wasn’t originally trained in dance and over the years I have watched a lot of videos and even gone to dance classes to help improve the athletes.” 

Terpak has taken advice from many of the top choreographers in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, including the University of California Los Angeles gymnastics program. UCLA is a team known for their stellar floor exercise choreography. UCLA gymnastics have even dubbed themselves the “floor party.” 

“Last year, I worked with Jordyn Wieber and she was the floor coach for UCLA,” Terpak said. “I also worked camps with [UCLA choreographer] BJ Das, and [former UCLA head coach] Valorie Kondos Field was one of my mentors last year in Arkansas. So I have learned a lot from the UCLA crew.” 

Terpak has taken this guidance to give Missouri enough recognition to garner their own nickname: “the fab floor.” 

“I brought a lot of that advice to Missouri. It makes me proud that all the experience I have has made an impact here,” Terpak said.

Each routine Terpak choreographs is individualized to fit each athlete’s personality. Freshman Hannah Horton’s dream floor routine set to music by Rihanna was made possible by Terpak. 

“Her floor is Rihanna themed,” Terpak said. “She really loves Rihanna so we mashed up her songs together and took inspiration from Rihanna’s superbowl performance.” 

While Horton has been a standout for the Tiger’s, Terpak is quick to note that she is impressed by the growth of all of the freshman team members. 

“All of the freshmen stand out,” Terpak said. “They have all impressed me with their growth in performance and how they commit to their routines.” 

Sometimes when thinking of ideas for floor routines, Terpak helps the gymnasts find music and themes for their routines. Other times, gymnasts will want to be a part of the process and collaborate with Terpak like Horton and freshman Kylie Minard. 

“Kylie Minard and I basically co-created her floor choreography. I love that she wanted to bring in her own ideas,” Terpak said.

Terpak’s role is unique to Missouri gymnastics. In previous years, gymnasts would receive their choreography from an outside source, not a Missouri coach. With Terpak being in the gym everyday, the team’s floor routines have had the opportunity to evolve as the season progresses. There are many times during practice where Terpak will find something in an athlete’s routine that could use improvement. Missouri gymnast Jocelyn Moore harped on this after the win against Louisiana State University. 

“In previous years we may have not focused on the details, but Jackie can tweak the little details because she choreographs our routines and stays and coaches us,” Moore said. 

Terpak also explained that being present each day allows her creatively to flow throughout the season as well and adjust when a gymnast does not mesh with the choreography. 

“In previous years, they would receive their choreography and didn’t have someone in the gym to hold them accountable to the way they learned it or change certain parts that flow with the vibe of the routine,” Terpak said. “There is stuff everyday that I work on in terms of choreography so I love being able to help them every single day.” 

In the last few years, artistry and choreography has seen a huge emphasis in the NCAA judging world, especially in terms of avoiding deductions. As gymnastics code of points is updated each year, new rules are created, including rules based on artistry in a gymnasts floor routine. This is something Terpak is conscious of when creating floor routines, but she wants to continue to create modern and entertaining routines. 

“Every year, rules evolve and as coaches it is our job to ensure the athletes have all of the requirements.” Terpak said. “People used to think that there was a ‘gymnastics style’ of dance, but we have had great choreographers come into the sport that have brought in the various styles of dance. It has been really fun for me to learn.” 

Outside of Terpak’s extensive choreography work, she also helps to produce social media content for Missouri gymnastics, which is a passion that Terpak has held since college.

“In college, I had produced videos and photos for Temple gymnastics social media,” Terpak said. “When I medically retired my senior year, I became a student assistant coach and really dove into social media. I got to work with all of the other sports at Temple too. I had a lot of fun doing creative content. I work with our creative team and we plan content together.” 

Terpak competed for Temple University gymnastics from 2018-2020. Only being a couple years removed from being a college student and a student athlete has helped Terpak connect with her athletes. 

“There are things student athletes go through now that they did not experience many years ago. It has been really helpful as someone who is not too far removed from college to connect with athletes and understand what is going on in their space,” Terpak said.

Since joining the coaching staff, Terpak has worked to continue to make Missouri gymnastics successful and that will hopefully continue in the future. 

Edited by Grace Ainger | gainger@themaneater.com 

Copy Edited By Logan Gee and Grace Knight | gknight@themaneater.com 

Edited by Genevieve Smith | gsmith@themaneater.com