75: Classic Episode with UCLA's Miss Val

Published: Feb. 5, 2014, 3:20 a.m.

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UCLA's six-time NCAA Championship winning coach, Valorie Kondos-Field.
Copyright Christy Linder 2014

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It's a Classic Episode with UCLA's ballet-dancer turned six-time NCAA Championships winning coach, Valorie Kondos-Field. Miss Val chats with Dvora Meyers, Blythe Lawrence, Jessica, and Uncle Tim about:

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  • The power of an athlete identity as retirement looms
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  • Collegiate gymnastics as one big life skills class
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  • The problems with basing self-esteem on performance
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  • Incentivizing artistry
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  • Her most\xa0embarrassing\xa0moment as a dancer
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  • Why so many of her athletes have the desire to go back to elite after college
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  • The\xa0actual dollar amount and experiential cost of losing NCAA eligibility
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  • What advice she gave Jordyn Wieber about going pro
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  • We discover how Miss Val and her former roommate inspired one of the creators of the television show Will and Grace
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  • Why Canadians thrive in NCAA
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  • Lastly, she tells the story of the amazing wedding gift she gave to a fan
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The Bruin Gymnastics YouTube channel. 15 years of UCLA routines, including the fan favorite, "Floor Files"; individual playlists featuring each gymnasts' routines for all four years.

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Miss Val on Twitter.

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UCLA Gymnastics website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.

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