Kate McDonald (gymnast)

Kate McDonald
Born	(2000-08-01) 1 August 2000 (age 24) East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Gymnastics career
Discipline	Women's artistic gymnastics
Country represented	Australia (2016–present)
Club	CYC gym sports
Head coach(es)	Jeb Silsbury
Medal record Representing   Australia Commonwealth Games 2022 Birmingham Balance beam 2022 Birmingham Team Pacific Rim Championships 2018 Medellín Team 2018 Medellín Uneven bars FIG World Cup Event 1st 2nd 3rd Apparatus World Cup 1 0 1

Kate McDonald (born 1 August 2000) is an Australian artistic gymnast. She is the 2022 Commonwealth Games champion on the balance beam and silver medalist in the team event. She represented Australia at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Early life

McDonald was born in East Melbourne in 2000. She took up gymnastics when she was five years old. ^[1]

Gymnastics career

McDonald competed with the Australian team that won a bronze medal at the 2018 Pacific Rim Championships, and she won a bronze medal in the uneven bars final. ^{[2] [3]} She also won the uneven bars bronze medals at the 2018 and 2019 Australian Championships. ^[4] She was selected to compete at the 2019 World Championships alongside Georgia-Rose Brown, Georgia Godwin, Talia Folino, and Emma Nedov. The team placed 13th in the qualification round, meaning they missed qualifying as a full team for the 2020 Summer Olympics. ^[5] At the 2020 International Gymnix, she won the balance beam silver medal behind Faith Torrez. ^[6]

McDonald won silver medals on both the uneven bars and balance beam at the 2022 Australian Championships. ^[4] She was then selected to compete at the 2022 Commonwealth Games alongside Georgia Godwin, Romi Brown, Breanna Scott, and Emily Whitehead. Together they won the silver medal in the team competition, behind England. ^[7] During event finals McDonald won gold on balance beam ahead of teammate Godwin and Emma Spence of Canada. ^[8] She then competed with the Australian team that placed tenth at the 2022 World Championships, making them the second reserves for the final. ^[9]

At the 2023 World Championships, McDonald helped Australia finish ninth and earn a full team berth to the 2024 Summer Olympics. Individually, she was the third reserve for the uneven bars final. ^[10] She helped Australia win the team silver medal at the 2024 DTB Pokal Team Challenge, and she won the uneven bars silver medal behind Qiu Qiyuan. ^[11] She was named to the Australian team to compete at the 2024 Olympic Games alongside Emma Nedov, Ruby Pass, Breanna Scott, and Emily Whitehead. ^[12] The team finished tenth in the qualifications, making them the second reserve for the team final. ^[13]

McDonald won her first FIG World Cup medal at the 2025 Osijek World Cup with a bronze on the uneven bars. ^[14] She then won the uneven bars gold medal at the Doha World Cup. ^[15]

Personal life

As of 2024, McDonald is studying a Bachelor of Environmental Science (Environmental Management and Sustainability) at Deakin University. ^{[16] [17]}

Competitive history

McDonald on the balance beam in 2020

Competitive history of Kate McDonald ^[18]

Year	Event	Team	AA	VT	UB	BB	FX
2017	Australian Championships		8
2018	Pacific Rim Championships
	Australian Championships
2019	Australian Championships		5
	FIT Challenge		23
	Australian Classic
	World Championships	13
2020	International Gymnix	5	7				6
2021	Australian Championships
2022	Australian Championships		4
	Oceania Championships						5
	Commonwealth Games				7
	World Championships	R2
2023
	World Championships	9
2024	DTB Pokal Team Challenge
	Olympic Games	10
2025	Osijek World Cup					7
	Doha World Cup						4
	World University Games	13	14		5

References

1. "Kate McDonald FIG profile". International Gymnastics Federation .
2. "Waverley duo medal at Pacific Rim Championships!". Waverley Gymnastics Centre. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
3. "USA brings home 29 medals from men's, women's individual event finals". USA Gymnastics . 30 April 2018. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
4. "Kate McDonald". Australian Olympic Committee . Retrieved 8 July 2025.
5. "Gymnastics update: Artistic Tokyo quotas, podium success at Trampoline World Cup and Australian high-scores at Artistic World Champs". Austrian Olympic Committee . 6 October 2019. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
6. "USA wins senior and junior team titles, 10 individual titles at 2020 Gymnix International". USA Gymnastics . 9 March 2020. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
7. "Alice Kinsella leads England team as they regain gymnastics gold in style". The Guardian . 30 July 2022.
8. "Commonwealth Games: Gymnast Kate McDonald edges out teammate Georgia Godwin for gold in balance beam final". Perth Now . 2 August 2022.
9. "51st FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships Liverpool (GBR), 29 October - 6 November 2022 Women's Team Qualification" (PDF). USA Gymnastics . International Gymnastics Federation. 29 October 2022. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
10. "We'll see you in Paris - 2023 Artistic World Championships". Gymnastics Queensland. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
11. "Stuttgart Recap: Team Australia at the 2024 DTB Pokal Cup". Gymnastics Victoria. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
12. "Largest Australian gymnastics team ever named for Paris Olympics". News.com.au . 18 June 2024.
13. "Olympic recap: Paris one of Australia's best ever Games". Gymnastics Australia . Retrieved 8 July 2025.
14. Crumlish, John (12 April 2025). "Israel, Bulgaria, China, Armenia and Türkiye golden on first day of finals at World Cup of Osijek". International Gymnast . Retrieved 8 July 2025.
15. "Karimi, Armenia strike double gold at Doha World Cup". International Gymnastics Federation . 22 April 2025. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
16. "The 2024 Paris Olympics start this week! Meet the Deakin students representing Australia". Deakin Life. Deakin University. 23 July 2024. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
17. "Elite Athlete Program profiles". Deakin University. Retrieved 27 August 2023.
18. "Kate McDonald". The Gymternet. Retrieved 25 July 2025.

External links

• Kate McDonald at the International Gymnastics Federation
• Kate McDonald at Olympics.com
• Kate McDonald at the Australian Olympic Committee