MontgomeryBlair High gymnastics alumni rally for bittersweet final senior night
With MCPS program ending, former gymnasts return to support team, reflect on its impact
By
Jacqueline KalilMay 1, 2026 11:37 a.m.
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The gym at Montgomery Blair High School was filled Thursday evening with more than just the Silver Spring school’s gymnastics team and its competition from Bethesda-Chevy Chevy Chase High who were participating in a final home meet — it was also a reunion of former gymnasts and team managers and captains who returned to celebrate the program’s final Senior Night.
With the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) gymnastics program slated to end this academic year, alumni answered a call to show support, turning the meet into a sendoff not only for graduating seniors but for the program itself. Blair Athletic Director Rita Boule had extended an invitation to all alumni of Blair’s gymnastic team to attend the meet.
MCPS decided in early February to cut the sport because it has struggled with “maintaining the program” due to “declining participation, a shortage of qualified coaches, and rising costs associated with specialized equipment and facility requirements,” according to a statement emailed to Bethesda Today by MCPS spokesperson Liliana Lopez.
Blair High alum Ibu Bundu, who managed the team during the 2014–15 season, said the experience left a lasting impression.
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“I had a very great time being in the program and made a lot of long-lasting friends,” Bundu said. “It’s sad that people won’t be able to do that in Montgomery County anymore.”
Kylie Santana, now a college freshman and a former gymnast at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School, said she felt compelled to attend the meet after building close relationships during her four years on the Bethesda school’s team.
“It feels great,” Santana said. “I obviously love seeing the team and the improvements they’ve made. I got really close with the girls in the grade below me, and now it’s their last meet. I just wanted to come out and support them, because they were always there to support me when I was a senior.”
For Santana, the night carried extra weight. Not only was it the final regular-season meet for this year’s seniors, but it also marked the end of a program that shaped her high school experience.
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“It just makes me very sad,” she said. “It’s hard to see something that I put a lot of effort into go away. It was such an important part of my high school experience.”
Santana credited the program with helping define her identity as both an athlete and a student, noting that it even influenced her decision to continue gymnastics at the collegiate club level.
“Gymnastics formed me into the person I am,” she said. “In a school setting, it gives you a bigger sense of purpose—you’re competing for something beyond yourself.”
Other alumni echoed that sentiment, describing the MCPS program as a rare blend of individual sport and team community.
Fridaous Djobo, another Blair alum who had joined the team in 2015 with no prior experience, said gymnastics offered a unique opportunity to connect with others.
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“It was my first time ever doing gymnastics,” Djobo said. “It was great to learn and be part of something. It’s really disappointing to hear that the program is ending.”
Eve Gates said she was a member of the Blair team throughout high school and had served as a team captain. She said the relationships she built through the program have endured long after graduation.
“I met a lot of great people, and I’m still friends with them,” Gates said. “It was a really good way to meet people, be part of a team and support each other.”
As the gymnastics performed their routines during the competition, the atmosphere in the gym reflected both celebration and loss—cheers for each performance mixed with the recognition that there would be no future seasons to follow.
For the alumni, the evening served as a reminder of how deeply the program shaped their lives—and how difficult it is to say goodbye.
“I’m hoping they can take the lessons they’ve learned here and apply them beyond high school,” Santana said of this year’s gymnastics team members. “But it’s definitely hard to see it end.”
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Originally published at Bethesdamagazine