Dana Duckworth, Alabama gymnastics' championship-winning coach, steps down from program

Alabama gymnastics coach Dana Duckworth announced on Thursday she will step down after 27 years with the program, including the past eight as head coach.

Duckworth led the Crimson Tide to a seventh-place national finish in her final season.

"It has been an absolute honor to compete for, recruit and coach so many amazing women who have been a part of the Alabama gymnastics family," Duckworth said in a school release. "This decision was not an easy one as I am forever grateful to our student-athletes, their families, my staff and fellow coaches. The University of Alabama is a special place and I care deeply about the gymnastics program, but after 27 years of involvement, I have decided to step down and focus on my family for now. I have all the confidence in the world in this team and wish nothing but great things for their future."

Duckworth competed at Alabama from 1990-93 where she was part of the 1991 NCAA championship team as well as a conference title in 1990. Over her time as a Crimson Tide athlete, Duckworth won eight All-America awards and won consecutive NCAA balance beam titles, the last of which was during her last season in 1993 as she secured a perfect 10.

She rejoined the program as a volunteer assistant in 1999 under then-coach Sarah Patterson, and was promoted to head coach following Patterson's retirement in 2014. Duckworth became the first coach in the SEC's history to win an SEC championship in her first year as head coach.

Duckworth has been a part of three national championships (2002, 2011, 2012) as an assistant and two SEC championships (2015, 2021) as head coach.

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"We appreciate Coach Duckworth's contributions to Alabama gymnastics, both as a coach and a student-athlete," Alabama athletics director Greg Byrne said in a school release. "She has had a lot of success over the years as a coach and as a leader in the community, and we wish Dana and her family all the best going forward."

Former Duckworth assistant and Alabama gymnast Gina Quinlan was named interim coach as the search for Duckworth's successor begins.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Alabama gymnastics coach Dana Duckworth resigns after 27 years