In 1996, Kentucky Wildcat Jenny Hansen Hecht (née Hansen) finished her time as a gymnast, cementing herself as an all-time great by earning a record 28 perfect 10s during her NCAA career. That feat remained unmatched until 2004 when UCLA’s Jamie Dantzscher finished her college career with the same number. This shared record remained untouched until 2023 when Florida’s Trinity Thomas notched her 28th perfect score, making it a three-way tie for most 10s in an NCAA career.
So what does someone do after becoming one of the most successful NCAA gymnasts of all time? Well, for Hansen Hecht the answer is: you do a lot! She’s worked on the set of Ninja Warrior demonstrating obstacles and constructing the sets; she runs her own business, coaches Xcel at Pinnacle Gymnastics Academy, looks after her horses, and still stays up to date with NCAA gymnastics and the Kentucky program that shaped her. She even made a run at the London 2012 Olympics with an elite comeback at age 37. The list of her varied life experiences would make anyone exhausted, but speaking from her home in Golden, Colorado, it’s clear that she thrives on being active and busy. Her energy is infectious and the warmth she exudes in conversation makes her a perfect role model for current and future Kentucky Wildcats alike.
Junior Makenzie Wilson had heard of Hansen Hecht well before she became a Wildcat herself. “I’ve always been a huge Kentucky fan,” she said. “She is one of those gymnasts that everyone just collectively looks up to, not just for the gymnast that she is, but also the athlete and the person she is, too.”
After leaving Kentucky, Hansen Hecht ventured into the entertainment industry. Her work as a stuntwoman on “Make It or Break It” is the most well-known work of her career for gymnastics fans. Her journey, however, began in live shows, with a role in a waterski tumbling show at SeaWorld. For several years, she traveled between SeaWorld’s locations in Florida, Ohio, and Texas before transitioning to Disney, where she became a cast member in various live productions. Following a departure from the entertainment sphere, she did something completely different: she worked as a rancher and even spent some time working on an oil pipeline.
Eventually, she returned to the entertainment industry, this time focusing on television and film. It was at this point in her life, while working in Los Angeles on ABC’s production of “Make It or Break It” that she decided to return to gymnastics. “It took two weeks from not training for ten years and I got my Jaeger back,” said Hansen Hecht. If she could do that, what more might she be capable of?
Surprisingly, despite her talent as a young gymnast, training for the Olympics was something she never really seriously considered. “I loved my family life. I didn’t want to leave my horses behind and be super into it the way I would have needed to be,” said Hansen Hecht.
So when it came to an elite comeback in the leadup to the 2012 Olympics, she felt she had nothing to lose. In the end, she didn’t make the national team, but she doesn’t regret the move. “I had such a great career, I had a great closure within the sport and I’m ok [with how it ended],” said Hansen Hecht.
Now, based in Colorado, gymnastics is still a huge part of her life. She is involved in adult gymnastics (although she doesn’t compete herself), and coaches at nearby Evergreen High School, but she mostly coaches in the Xcel program. “I really love the Xcel program, it’s a place where children can appreciate the sport of gymnastics,” said Hansen Hecht.
Even with everything she does, she manages to keep up to speed with NCAA gymnastics, especially her beloved Kentucky. Almost three decades after her departure, her influence on the program and the legacy she left continue to resonate with current Kentucky gymnasts.
Her name dominates the honors boards that hang beside the beams in the practice gym and Worley believes that she paved a path for them as both female athletes and gymnasts.“She’s an inspiration for me for all the records that she set and really someone that I feel like I could aspire to be like and someone that I could try to chase,” said senior Raena Worley. “Seeing someone like her that is not afraid to go out there and be herself and do everything she can, to the best ability that she could, that sets a really great tone for a lot of younger girls out there!” said Worley.
Wilson also feels the way that Hansen Hecht went about her college career was admirable in many ways. “Yes, she was one of the best gymnasts to ever come through Kentucky, that’s easily said, but she’s also one of the most gracious athletes and personally that’s what stands out to me the most,” said Wilson.
It’s been 50 years since Leah Little started the program at the University of Kentucky, and, until the present season, they had not achieved another perfect 10 since Hansen Hecht’s departure. However, on alumni night in Rupp Arena in February 2024, after a presentation and recognition of Little’s dedication and outstanding contribution to the program throughout its history, that all changed.
In an incredible full-circle moment, Hansen Hecht happened to be in the crowd to witness Makenzie Wilson’s flawless performance on vault, which marked the end of the 28-year drought for a Kentucky perfect 10. This was followed by Raena Worley securing a second Kentucky perfect score on floor three rotations later.
“It was incredible,” Hansen Hecht recalled. “The assistant coach from my time, Tim Myers, was sitting in front of me with two of my teammates and he turned around to me and said ‘did you see what just happened on vault?’ and I said ‘yeah she got a perfect 10!’ and he said ‘no that’s the first since you got your 10s’ and in that moment I got goosebumps.” When Worley’s 10 flashed she could hardly believe it. “There were so many epic events at that celebration that it was almost overwhelming, certainly quite hard to comprehend,” said Hansen Hecht.
Hansen Hecht congratulated both Wilson and Worley after the meet, a special moment for the gymnasts. “That night was like a blur and Jenny came up to us and it was so nice getting to tell her that I was super honored to be able to do something she’s done so many times. To have my name beside hers in a way is crazy to me,” said Wilson.
Worley’s post-meet encounter with Hansen Hecht was a similar experience to Wilson’s. “When I met her face-to-face it was just so exciting,” said Worley. “Getting to meet her in person and have such a special interaction and seeing how not only excited she was for me, but so excited to be there for it was, oh it was so cool. I loved it!”
There has been plenty of discourse this season about NCAA scoring overall, but when it comes to the judging, especially the number of tens we’ve seen, Hansen Hecht takes a slightly more nuanced approach. After being asked to be a vault judge at an NAIGC adult gymnastics meet she has a newfound respect for judges. “Being in that seat was a challenge for me- I’m used to doing things, instructing people, but [sitting in that seat]- it was so quick. You can look at a video and easily say ‘oh the judge really didn’t see that [deduction]?’ but it’s so quick,” said Hansen Hecht.
She understands that it can be hard to see where those imperfections are when the quality of the gymnastics is so high. “I can see where judges have a difficult time finding those small, tiny little half-tenth deductions when there are straight legs and pointed toes, but that’s why they’re in the seat, so they really should be looking for those more strategically than in the past,” said Hansen Hecht.
And what does she think about the rise of the two-pass floor routine? Overall, she’s not a fan. Though she is mindful of how athletes’ bodies change in college and the impact four more years of competition can have, she also sees how far conditioning has come since she competed when a three-pass routine was required for a routine to start from a ten. “Conditioning is evolving, so why not keep it at three?” said Hansen Hecht.
She would love to work with the NCAA on reevaluating the rules based on how competitive college gymnastics has become. “There should be some sort of requirement [for three passes] because that’s just taxing on the women doing the three tumbling passes, and yes it does make it more difficult but are we trying to diminish what we are doing? There are so many women that are going to the Olympics from college and that just didn’t happen in my time,” said Hansen Hecht.
Since another run at the Olympics isn’t in the cards for Hansen Hecht, what’s next? She’s currently looking for ways to apply the knowledge that she’s gained to running her business, Muscle Endeavors, to help young athletes. Her work focuses on utilizing ‘muscle activation technique’ to help establish a neural connection from the brain to the muscles in order to help with things like range of movement and injuries caused by chronic overuse of muscles in order to compensate for weaker ones. This technique is something she can see helping many college gymnasts in the future.
Additionally, she has reconnected with Julie Ballard Clark, Georgia alumna and wife of LSU head coach Jay Clark, on how to help athletes. “We want to be part of continually advancing an understanding of, and helping athletes develop, what it is that helps them get to college,” said Hansen Hecht. “We want them to understand their bodies and help them do so many things, so she and I are trying to put some clinics together on health, both mental and physical.”
Her enduring passion for health and well-being, coupled with her unwavering love for the sport, suggests that her involvement in gymnastics won’t be ending anytime soon— that seems a more unlikely outcome than someone managing to break her career perfect 10 record.
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Article by Katie Couldrey
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