Samantha Sheehan

Sheehan began competing at the international elite level in 2001.^[2] She placed 19th in the junior all-around at the 2001 U.S. Classic and placed eighth on the uneven bars.^[1] She then finished 22nd in the junior all-around at the 2001 U.S. Championships.^[3]

Sheehan became age-eligible for the senior elite level in 2002. At the 2002 U.S. Classic, she finished fifth in the all-around and had the highest score on the floor exercise.^[1] She then finished 11th in the all-around at the 2002 U.S. Championships.^[4] She was selected to compete at the 2002 World Championships, which would also be her international debut.^[5] She qualified for the floor exercise final in first place with a score of 9.450 after winning a tiebreaker over Daniele Hypólito.^[6] In the final, she won the bronze medal with a score of 9.325, behind Elena Gómez and Verona van de Leur.^[7]

Sheehan won the all-around at a 2003 friendly meet against Belgium and helped the United States win the team competition.^[1] She then placed 12th in the all-around at the 2003 U.S. Classic.^[8] In November 2003, she signed a National Letter of Intent with the Georgia GymDogs.^[9]

Sheehan competed at the 2004 Olympic Test Event in Athens and won a silver medal on the uneven bars, behind Li Ya.^[10] She injured her rotator cuff in May 2004 and withdrew from the 2004 U.S. Championships.^[11] Her petition to compete at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials was accepted. She competed on the vault, uneven bars, and floor exercise at the Olympic Trials.^[12] She was not invited to the Olympic Selection Camp.^[13]

Sheehan began competing for the Georgia GymDogs in 2005.^[14] She did not compete regularly as she was going through a growth spurt and injuries.^[15] She was part of the team that won the 2005 NCAA Championships.^[16] Starting in 2006, the team began awarding the Sam Sheehan Spirit Award.^[2][17]

• Samantha Sheehan at World Gymnastics
• Samantha Sheehan at InterSportStats
• Samantha Sheehan at USA Gymnastics