Iowa State University Athletics
ISU Welcomes Sydney Saturnino for 2021-22
11.24.2020 | Gymnastics
AMES, Iowa – The Iowa State gymnastics program made another strong addition to its squad for the 2022 season with the signing of Italian gymnast Sydney Saturnino, head coach Jay Ronayne announced Tuesday. Saturnino brings to Ames a deep background of international competition and experience at the elite and junior levels.
"Sydney will be arriving at ISU with many years of elite international gymnastics experience to build upon," Ronayne said. "She has shown us that she is a fierce competitor and loves to win. She is exactly the type of competitor that will help propel our program to the next level. I am very excited about what she can bring to our team"
Saturnino, from Ischia, Italy, has been out of competition due to injuries since 2018, but has been working her way back to fitness and on the collegiate recruiting radar. Training at GAL Lissone in Monza, she finished eighth in the all-around at the 2018 Italian Championships, her best event being balance beam which she advanced to the event finals in. She has been part of the "Road to Tokyo" Project within the Italian Gymnastics Federation ahead of the Olympics in Tokyo, Japan in summer 2021.
"The deeper I got into the world of Iowa State, the more I felt part of the family," Saturnino said. "I don't think there is anything more beautiful and exciting than this."
At the 2017 Italian Gold Championships, she won the Junior 3 division all-around, claiming gold medals on bars, beam and floor and silver on vault. She was the all-around gold medalist at the 2017 Flanders Team Challenge.
