A typical afternoon for senior Tomas Minc begins with a straight shot to Dynamite Gymnastics Center. Four to five times each week, Tomas makes the trek up to Rockville to work on his craft. For the average athlete, this amount of practice seems like an average week, but for what Tomas seemingly lacks in days of practice, he earns back in practice time. Each training session for Tomas generally lasts around four to five hours, keeping him in the gym until late hours.
This practice regimen has worked for Tomas, who’s currently a five-time United States national team member, a world age group champion, and placed second at this year’s Rimini World Cup. Most, if not all, these accolades have been earned in Tomas’ main event– the double mini. A double mini is two small trampolines connected into one, unlike a traditional dismounting trampoline event, a double mini allows for two separate flips to be performed: an initial flip in which the gymnast must land back on the trampoline, and a second flip which is dismounted onto a mat. Though Tomas enjoys doing the double mini, he has a slight love-hate relationship with the sport. This is due to sport recognition. The double-mini isn’t recognized as a collegiate or Olympic gymnastic event, leaving Tomas in a tricky situation following high school.
Aside from competition, Tomas has found success outside of the gym through social media. As of today, Tomas’ Instagram account is sitting at 105,000 followers. Regularly posting different flips, fails, and competitions have allowed Tomas to build his large following. As the account’s following increased, Tomas’ disbelief grew. Once an aspiring gymnast watching his favorite content creators online; now reversing the role and inspiring up-and-coming gymnasts all around the globe.
Tomas’ ultimate goal is to one day be an Olympic team member, representing the United States. As of lately, the double mini has been gaining momentum and popularity; raising its likelihood of becoming an Olympic event. “Hopefully the event is recognized by 2028,” Tomas says, but until then he will continue training and working hard on achieving his goals. Right now Tomas is mostly focused on the next World Cup, where he plans to avenge his silver medal and take home the gold.