By Dan Ninham
Brynn Green is from the Lower Sioux Indian Community in Minnesota. She is an eighth grade student at Redwood Valley Middle School. Green participated in the 2025 Minnesota High School Gymnastics State Meet.
“I was a varsity all-around gymnast my first year competing for the school team as a seventh grader and I earned an All-Conference award,” said Brynn Green. “This year I earned a trip to the Minnesota State Gymnastics Meet on the bars and beam. I also earned an All State Honorable Mention award.”
High level indigenous athletes follow their indigenous core values in practice and competition. Green said, “I always try to show respect to my teammates, competitors, coaches and judges. I have built many relationships with other gymnasts and do my best to be a good teammate. I celebrate with them after good routines and support them if things don’t go their way. I encourage my teammates to do their best in all sports.”
Most athletes that strive to meet and surpass their goals and develop new ones are guided by others to think and move in a positive direction.
“My mentor is one of my gymnastics coaches Dean Wilson,” said Green. “He has been a part of gymnastics for more than 25 years and he pushes me to try new skills.”
“Before Brynn joined the high school program, I would go to the gym with my daughter,” said Dean Wilson, head gymnastics coach at Redwood Valley HS for the past 25 years and stepped down to be an assistant this past season. “Rachel, Brynn’s mom, would bring Brynn in to work out. I began to see what skills she was doing when was in fourth grade. I would make suggestions to help with the skills she was doing. I then started to put skills in her mind to think about. This was to help her try to grasp what she was capable of in the sport.”
Katie Wilke and Brittany McNeil were Brynn’s co-head gymnastic coaches this past gymnastics season.
“From the beginning I knew there was something unique about Brynn,” said Katie Wilke who just started working at the Redwood Valley School District this past school year. “In a sport where every routine demands focus, precision, and resilience, Brynn’s ability to stay calm under pressure quickly became one of her defining qualities. I’ve watched her fall, get back up, and rise above each setback with strength.”
Brittany McNeil has coached Brynn for the past two seasons initially as an assistant and this past season as the co-head coach.
“Last year Brynn was always in the top four places for all around and everyone she went up against was a full foot or more taller than her,” said Coach McNeil. “She looked so young but worked so hard to be as good as she is. It was fun to see her up there with seniors and juniors and holding her own.”
Andy Ourada is the Redwood Valley High School Activities Director. He talked about one of the high schools up and coming athletes that recently participated on the state stage for gymnastics. He said, “Brynn has been in gymnastics for what seems like her entire life and she is very gifted. She has worked extremely hard to get to where she is by taking in multiple opportunities to train outside of her season and getting coaching that pushes her to be the best. She tumbles, jumps and flies through the air with grace and determination.”
Green started being in gymnastics at an early age. “My parents signed me up for summer gymnastics when I was four years old,” she said. “I joined a traveling club team in the fourth through sixth grade before being able to join the school team. I compete in all four events – vault, bars, beam and floor. Bars is my favorite.”
“Competing at the state meet was a great experience,” said Green. “There were a lot of good competitors and it was fun to see new skills. Seeing other gymnasts gave me ideas for how to progress my skills next year.”
“Gymnastics has always been part of my life,” said Green. “When I competed for the club team, my family would drive me an hour each way to the gym. I’d often have to finish my homework and eat dinner in the car. But I learned how to manage my time and made a lot of friends who all love gymnastics as much as I do.”
“Even though gymnastics is an individual sport, it’s also a team sport. Being on the varsity team as a seventh grader was intimidating at first, but my teammates made me feel welcome,” added Green.
“As I get older, I want to do the same for the younger gymnasts, and I would like to coach once I graduate high school,” said Green.
