Impact Of A Scholarship: Karen & Kathy Tang
Jason Belt, Maryland Media Relations
3/17/2022
At first, Kathy Tang wanted anything but to follow her sister Karen’s footsteps and join the Maryland gymnastics team.
As younger siblings typically do, Kathy wanted to branch off and start her own path in collegiate gymnastics at a school other than the one her sister was excelling at.
After going back and forth about what her best option would be, the choice she landed on turned out to be right in front of her all along.
“When it came down to it, I really liked Maryland,” Kathy said. “It was the coaches, it was the team, it was the campus, the academics. It had everything that I wanted, and I was being stubborn and didn’t want to go because of my sister. That was not a good reason to not go to the school of my dreams.”
Our scholarships and the people that surrounded us helped us be the best student-athletes possible.Karen Tang
According to both of them, it seems like Kathy made the right choice.
“Having Kathy on the team made us closer,” Karen said. “We still make a point to talk every day. Our relationship at Maryland has made us stronger. “
Karen (pictured below), who competed at Maryland from 2011-2015, was named to the All-Big Ten Second Team and earned All-Big Ten Academic honors as a graduate student in 2015. She believes that having her younger sister on the same team as her impacted both the team and their personal relationship tremendously.
“Having [Kathy] on the team just made me want to be a better sister and athlete,” she said. “She pushed me to be better without really even saying anything.”
Both sisters earned scholarships to compete at Maryland and note the importance that privilege had on their daily lives. But also that there were no obvious differences between those on the team with or without a scholarship.
“We were such a team and never made a distinction,” Karen said. “Obviously having things like books and classes coordinated for us was helpful. I think that allowed us to really focus on not just being great athletes, but also focus on academics when we needed to and not have to worry about other things.”
“Our scholarships and the people that surrounded us helped us be the best student-athletes possible,” she added.
Kathy (pictured below), who competed from 2013-2016, tied for 19th on vault at the Big Ten Championship and tied for 16th on floor in the NCAA Regional as a junior in 2015.
An injury ended her freshman season halfway through and forced her to watch her team compete from the sideline. While this could have been something detrimental, it gave her a greater appreciation and love for the sport and motivation to come back even better than before.
“It changed the way I looked at gymnastics and gave me more of a determination to come back stronger,” Kathy said.
The adrenaline rush of competing on such a big stage and in front of the team, coaches, and fans is what pushed her back onto the floor.
As her mindset changed, Maryland made a change of their own, switching from the ACC to the Big Ten. Although the gymnastics team was in the EAGL conference, the point stands, things looked like they were going to be tougher. While a major switch like this in the middle of a career could have been a difficult transition, the sisters embraced it and looked forward to the challenge.
“It was just a whole different caliber of gymnastics,” Karen said. “We were competing against these top schools that had great programs and it gave us exposure to a different audience, so it was something we were excited about.”
The willingness to compete against these Big Ten schools was something that drove the team to be as successful as they were. The bright lights did not phase them as they made their transition and in fact, raised their confidence to an all-time high. The sisters and the team were able to bottle their excitement and anxiety about joining one of the best conferences in the country and use that on the floor to motivate them.
“I think we handled it really well,” Kathy added. “We weren’t really intimidated but knew that we had something to prove.”
Although their Maryland careers have ended, the roots that they have put down in College Park over the years they spent on campus and their love for the school have remained the same.
Kathy, who now lives in San Diego, works as a Recruitment Manager for a Healthcare company but still makes a point to keep in touch with her teammates whenever she can. While she hasn’t been able to make a meet since before the COVID-19 pandemic, she keeps up with the current team and tries to stay involved through social media.
Karen, who lives in Miami, remains very close with her teammates even though they all are scattered across the country.
The memories she created at Maryland will stick with her for the rest of her life. But one that stands out involved not only her gymnastics family but her real family as well.
Being from Massachusetts, it was difficult for the sisters’ parents and family members to make the trip down to College Park or any other Big Ten venue. On top of the travel distance, her dad had not seen her compete in many years due to work obligations.
During a meet at the University of New Hampshire, her dad and family surprised her by being in attendance. The funny thing is, Kathy already knew about this, leaving Karen as the one who was caught off guard with happiness.
“I can’t believe they surprised me and not Kathy,” Karen joked.
She ended up setting personal records on floor and vault and gives the credit for her performance to her dad being in the stands for the first time in eight years.
“I think it was because of my dad. I swear it was,” she said.
