Gymnast from Delray lands on U.S. team in journey that began at Twisters in Boca
Crew Bold, 24, celebrating after a parallel bars routine, was a Big Ten champion at the University of Michigan, giving him aspirations to compete in the 2028 Olympics. Photos provided
By Rich Biebrich
A decade ago, then 14-year-old Crew Bold had already started his journey to becoming a world-class gymnast, a path that has taken him from Twisters Gymnastics in Boca Raton to the University of Minnesota, the University of Michigan, Germany’s Bundesliga for gymnasts, and finally, back in the United States, to his earning a coveted spot on the national team in August.
On the horizon, if things go according to plan, the Twisters gym rat who grew up in Delray Beach will be in Los Angeles in 2028, competing as a member of the U.S. Olympic team.
Recently, he’s had to slow down following surgery he had on his left ankle to clear out bone spurs that had been bothering him. For a time, he was hopping around on crutches with a pink plaster cast that covered his mending ankle. He said the pink was for Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, but admitted it also went surprisingly well with the deep blue Michigan T-shirt he was wearing.
“It’s actually my third surgery on my left ankle and they took about a handful of bone chips out that shouldn’t be there,” said Bold, now 24, who added he didn’t think to keep any of the chips for souvenirs. “I was too loopy to ask them to keep them by the time they were done.”
A guy who spends a lot of time spinning, jumping, flipping and flying through the air with what seems the greatest of ease can be forgiven for being a little loopy from anesthetic, especially as it is apparent that Bold is one of the clearest-minded people you could possibly meet.
It’s also clear he has a strong competitive streak, and you get the impression that — as he makes his way on crutches to a table in the back of a Starbucks on a visit home to Delray Beach — if another gent on crutches challenged him to a 50-yard dash, Bold would ask, “Where and when?”
His father, Bill Bold, said Crew has always been that way.
“He was always very muscular for a kid his age, and still is,” Bill Bold said. “We had him in youth soccer and he was scoring, like, 20 goals a game. Then, all of a sudden, he started doing front flips and back flips after he would score a goal, and we turned to each other and said, ‘Where did that come from?’ So, that’s when we thought we should get him involved in gymnastics.”
Living a routine
Ten years ago, in a previous profile in The Coastal Star, Bold said all he thought about was gymnastics. Not much has changed since then.
There is a plan for every day. Each starts at 6 a.m. and by 6:45 he’s already working out. Three days a week, that begins with lifting weights — working on specific muscle groups — to build strength and endurance. After that are recovery time and typically “a medium to heavy” breakfast of eggs, a bagel, turkey bacon and tomatoes.
Afternoon practice runs from 2 to 6:30 p.m. and starts with a little snack of carbs and protein to fuel up. Dinner is pretty simple.
“It’s chicken and rice every night, with broccoli or asparagus,” he said. “Any variation comes from my sauces. And my vegetables.”
He’s in bed by 10 or 10:30 p.m.
“I find time to hang out with my friends, play a little golf here and there,” Bold said. “But the majority of my day is taken up by gymnastics.”
His drive was noted 10 years ago by one of his instructors at Twisters.
“He wants to be great and he knows what it takes,” Shane Cummings said. “And he knows he has to work hard.”
Said his dad: “He is probably the most tenacious, persistent yet lovable noodge you would meet in your life,” recalling that “we even got a pig as a pet because he wouldn’t stop bothering us. We would just give in.”
Bold is strong on parallel bars and owns good results on the high bar and floor exercise as well.
The floor exercise highlights Bold’s strength and flexibility.
How he made U.S. team
Anyone less determined than Bold may have packed it all in when, after he spent two years at the University of Minnesota, COVID-19 struck and the school shut down its gymnastics program.
“That was devastating,” Bold said. “But it turned out to be more of a blessing in disguise as I was able to transfer to Michigan.”
While there, he became a multiple-time All-America selection and four-time Big Ten champion.
“It’s been a dream come true,” said Bold, who excels on the high bar and the parallel bars.
When college was over — he graduated in June 2024 — Bold decided he wasn’t done. He still had Olympic aspirations.
“I ended up living and competing in Germany for 2½ months” at the end of 2024, he said. “It was amazing. And when I came back I decided to stick with gymnastics a little longer.”
He won the high bar competition at the 2025 Winter Cup in February (also placing sixth on the floor exercise), and he was runner-up on the high bar at the U.S. Championships in August (and sixth on the parallel bars) — earning his spot on the senior national team.
Defying gravity
It all comes down to “dedication to his sport,” said Chris Heffernan, a friend to the Bold family who has watched Crew grow into adulthood. “I don’t think people understand the level of commitment it takes to be the level of athlete that Crew is.”
Bold explains gymnastics in very simple terms.
“It’s always you against gravity,” he pointed out. “Football, soccer, it’s person against person. In gymnastics it’s you against the event. And when there is contact, it’s me hitting the floor, usually.”
That’s why he has to be precise.
“I know exactly how many steps I need on the floor down to every second. I know exactly how long it takes to do my routine. It’s all down to a science and it’s all second nature at this point.”
And no, he doesn’t think about what he looks like as he is flying through the air over the high bar or during a floor routine.
“It’s more so just thinking about how you’re going to land,” Bold said. “I don’t have time to focus on the feeling of being in the air. I’m definitely thinking how do I land this in the safest possible way without getting injured.
"There’s no time to think about if this looks cool.
“Once the competition starts you don’t think about anything and just let all the training work for itself. If you start getting into your head you can become more nervous and suddenly it just doesn’t go the way it is supposed to go.”
What is Bold thinking when he’s in flight? ’How do I land this in the safest possible way without getting injured.’ Bold placed second on high bar at the 2025 U.S. nationals.
The future beyond sport
There is one thing that Bold is having more trouble visualizing, where reality enters the picture and disturbs the landing.
“I don’t know if my body is going to last three more years, honestly,” until the next Olympics, he admitted. But then he immediately returns to his step-by-step thought process.
“Right now, taking it month by month is the best kind of plan of action for me. I would love to compete internationally for the U.S. at a World Cup.”
And he even has his exit strategy from gymnastics figured out, too.
“I would love to get into medical device sales. That’s what my dad did in New York City,” Bold said.
“My girlfriend just moved to New York, and I’ve visited her multiple times and I love the area. So, I’ll see where that goes. I want to get into foot-and-ankle [devices].”
He smiled and took a look at the pink cast.
“I know a little bit about that.”
Comments