MyKayla Skinner is an American former artistic gymnast best known for winning the vault silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as an individual competitor, stepping in after Simone Biles withdrew from competition.
She built her career across elite gymnastics and the collegiate level, competing for the University of Utah before returning to elite competition and reaching the Olympic podium in 2021.
Who is MyKayla Skinner?
MyKayla Brooke Skinner Harmer is a retired American artistic gymnast who competed in Women’s Artistic Gymnastics at both the elite and collegiate levels.
Her career spanned from her junior debut in 2011 through her retirement on August 1, 2021, following the Tokyo Games.
She accumulated 11 total medals at the USA Gymnastics National Championships across her senior career.
Her competitive highlights include a team gold at the 2014 World Championships, a bronze medal on vault at those same championships, and the vault silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Prior to her elite comeback, Skinner competed for the Utah Red Rocks at the University of Utah from 2017 to 2019, earning two NCAA titles.
She served as an alternate for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics team, traveling to Brazil with the squad but not competing in the Games.
Her Tokyo vault silver came under extraordinary circumstances. Skinner had prepared to fly home after finishing outside the top-two qualifying positions for the vault final.
However, after Biles withdrew from competition, Skinner stayed and eventually entered the vault final, where she delivered a medal-winning performance in front of her cheering teammates.
MyKayla Skinner Husband
MyKayla Skinner is married to Jonas Harmer. The couple met through a mutual friend at the University of Utah and began dating while Skinner competed for the Utes.
In October 2019, shortly after she returned from the 2019 World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany, Harmer proposed. They married on November 15, 2019.
Jonas Harmer has worked as a sales manager and has also been active on YouTube alongside Skinner. The couple remained based in the Gilbert, Arizona area following retirement.
Early Life of MyKayla Skinner
MyKayla Skinner grew up in Gilbert, Arizona, where she was raised by her parents Cris and Kym Skinner.
She has three older siblings: brother Jeremy and sisters Chelsea and Katie, two of whom are former gymnasts themselves.
Growing up around gymnastic siblings shaped her early engagement with the sport.
Skinner is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a faith that remained central to her personal life through her career and into retirement.
She first started doing flips around the house with her sisters and began formal gymnastics training young.
Her early passion for the vault and floor events drove a focus that would define her competitive strengths for years.
MyKayla Skinner Age / Birthday
MyKayla Skinner is 29 years old as of 2026, born on December 9, 1996. Her birthday has not yet passed this year.
Her zodiac sign is Sagittarius, a sign often linked with drive, adventurousness, and direct communication.
Since retiring in August 2021, she has focused on family life and remained a visible public voice on gymnastics topics.
MyKayla Skinner Ethnicity and Nationality
MyKayla Skinner is American by nationality, born and raised in Gilbert, Arizona. Her ethnic background is White American.
Her family’s roots and upbringing in the American Southwest, along with her faith community, shaped the values she carried throughout her athletic career.
MyKayla Skinner Height and Weight
MyKayla Skinner stands at 5 feet 0 inches tall, or 1.52 meters. Her competition weight during her elite years was reported at approximately 103 lbs, or 47 kg.
Her compact, powerful build gave her the acceleration and body control needed for her signature events, particularly vault and floor exercise.
MyKayla Skinner Education
MyKayla Skinner briefly attended Higley High School in Gilbert, Arizona as a freshman in 2011.
She then switched to homeschooling starting in 2012 to accommodate the demands of her elite gymnastics training schedule.
In November 2014, she signed a National Letter of Intent to join the University of Utah gymnastics program.
She deferred her enrollment by one year to pursue the 2016 Olympics, then deferred again after the 2020 Games were postponed due to the pandemic.
She intended to complete her academic degree after retiring from competition.
MyKayla Skinner Career
MyKayla Skinner’s gymnastics career began in 2011 and progressed through junior, elite, and collegiate stages before her final chapter on the Olympic stage.
Junior and Early Elite Career (2011-2014)
Skinner made her junior competitive debut in 2011. At the American Classic that year, she won the Junior Individual All-Around title, announcing herself as a top-level junior prospect.
She transitioned to senior elite competition in 2012. At the P&G Championships that year, she finished sixth in the all-around and placed third on vault and floor, establishing herself quickly among the country’s best senior gymnasts.
In 2014, she competed at the Pan American Championships in Toronto, Canada, where she won gold in the team event, all-around, vault, and floor exercise.
Later that year, she earned selection to represent the United States at the 2014 World Championships in Nanning, China.
At those championships, she contributed to the U.S. team’s gold medal in the team final and also claimed an individual bronze on vault. She placed fourth on floor exercise.
College Career at Utah and 2016 Olympics (2015-2019)
After the 2014 Worlds, Skinner began competing at the senior national level while preparing for 2016.
At the 2016 U.S. National Championships, she won a silver medal on vault and a bronze on floor exercise, placing 10th in the all-around.
Those results earned her an invitation to the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials. At the Trials, she finished fourth in the all-around.
Despite outperforming several teammates, the selection committee named her as the first alternate.
She traveled to Rio de Janeiro with the team and trained with the Final Five throughout the Games, staying ready without competing.
After Rio, Skinner enrolled at the University of Utah and joined the Red Rocks program. In her first collegiate season, she won 47 events.
By 2018, she went 54-for-54 in her events without a single fall, helping her team rise to second in the national rankings.
She claimed two NCAA titles during her time with Utah, in events including floor exercise.
Her elite comeback began in 2019, when she deferred her senior year at Utah to train for Tokyo.
At the 2019 World Championships in Stuttgart, she served as the team alternate and travelled to Germany.
Tokyo Olympics and Retirement (2020-2021)
Skinner faced a series of setbacks during the Olympic build-up. She injured her foot, tested positive for COVID-19, and dealt with a bout of pneumonia during the postponement year.
Despite those challenges, she qualified for the 2021 U.S. Olympic Team as the second individual competitor, finishing fifth overall at the Trials.
At the Tokyo Olympics in July 2021, Skinner competed as an individual. She placed 10th in the qualifying all-around, which left her outside the top-two U.S. positions needed to advance to the vault final.
She prepared to leave Tokyo and posted a farewell message online, calling it “closing the book” on her gymnastics career.
After Simone Biles withdrew from the team final due to the twisties, Biles’ coach contacted Skinner and asked her to stay.
Biles ultimately withdrew from four individual event finals. This opened a spot in the vault final for Skinner, who entered as a late replacement.
On August 1, 2021, Skinner competed in the vault final at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre. She delivered two clean vaults, scoring well enough to earn the silver medal.
Her former teammate Biles cheered from the stands. Skinner announced her retirement from gymnastics that same day.
MyKayla Skinner Awards and Championships
| Year | Event | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | World Championships, Nanning | Team Gold, Vault Bronze |
| 2014 | Pan American Championships, Toronto | Gold: Team, AA, Vault, Floor |
| 2015 | World Championships (alternate) | Travel selection |
| 2016 | U.S. National Championships | Silver: Vault; Bronze: Floor |
| 2016 | Rio Olympics | Alternate (did not compete) |
| 2017-2019 | NCAA Championships (Utah) | 2 titles |
| 2020 | Collegiate Athlete of the Year | Annual award |
| 2021 | Tokyo Olympics, Vault | Silver Medal |
MyKayla Skinner Children
MyKayla Skinner and Jonas Harmer welcomed their first child, a daughter named Charlotte Jane Harmer, in September 2023.
The couple nicknamed their daughter “Lottie.” Skinner shared the news publicly on Instagram shortly after the birth.
During her pregnancy, Skinner spoke candidly about the physical challenges, describing pregnancy as harder than her Olympic training.
She and Harmer announced the pregnancy earlier in 2023 and shared the birth news with fans online.
MyKayla Skinner Net Worth
MyKayla Skinner’s estimated net worth is $1 million as of 2026. Her earnings came primarily from her gymnastics career, including competition prize money and brand partnerships.
During her career, Skinner worked with brands including Ivy City Co and Ozonleos, promoting them through her social media channels.
Her Instagram presence and YouTube channel, which reached over 130,000 subscribers, provided additional income through sponsorships and advertising revenue.
The University of Utah athletics program provided a full gymnastics scholarship during her collegiate years, covering tuition costs through her time with the Red Rocks.
Since retiring in 2021, Skinner has remained active on social media and made public statements on gymnastics-related topics.
MyKayla Skinner Social Media
MyKayla Skinner is active on Instagram and YouTube. Her Instagram handle is @mykaylaskinner, where she shares personal updates, family content, and posts related to gymnastics.
Her YouTube channel covers lifestyle and family content and accumulated over 130,000 subscribers by mid-2023.
Conclusion
MyKayla Skinner’s vault silver at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics stands as one of the most unlikely individual performances in recent U.S. gymnastics history, arriving after she had already said goodbye to the sport and was preparing to board a plane home.
Her decade-long career across elite and collegiate gymnastics, capped by that silver medal, reflects the type of athletic persistence that defines her competitive record.