Two state champion athletes in one Coast family? Meet Sadie Rose and Cooper Joachim.
Ask any parent about their children, and many will gush about how proud they are. That’s just what parents do.
When it comes to 12-year-old Sadie Rose Joachim and 8-year-old Cooper Joachim, their mother said shocked was a better word.
“I don’t know how we were so lucky to have the kids we do,” Sally Joachim said.
Both are state champions in their respective sports — gymnastics and BMX bicycle racing. Both of their rooms are lined with awards, Cooper with a mound of trophies and Sadie Rose with a wall full of medals.
Like most kids, the two siblings are competitive with each other about everything. Both have played multiple sports and aren’t shy when it comes to claiming who is the fastest. But although their 40-time may be disputed, their success isn’t.
Sadie Rose stands at 4 feet, 7 inches tall, but is a powerhouse on the bars and loves to express herself on the floor. When she started gymnastics at 6 years old, her mother said she was a natural.
“We went just to try it out to see if it’s something she would like,” Sally said. “The gym saw her and said they think she’d be really good and asked if we were interested in gymnastics. We said yes and here we are.”
Her talent landed her at Laniers Gymnastics in Gulfport, and she competes at Level 8 along with being a part of the gym’s team. In 2018, Sadie Rose won state and received the first competing slot for regionals. There she took a bronze medal, a feat she was very proud of. Her goal is to eventually go on to the Junior Olympics.
“I really love to do this sport,” Sadie Rose said. “You should do whatever your heart feels. Don’t just do something because your parents want you to, you should have a passion for what you do.”
One of the biggest inspirations for the petite preteen is Simone Biles, who this year became the most decorated gymnast in World Championship history with 25 total medals. Biles was also the 2016 Olympic individual all-around, vault and floor gold medalist, and balance beam bronze medalist.
“She showed me that just because you’re short doesn’t mean you can’t do anything you want,” Sadie Rose said. “She’s the best gymnast there is, and I’d really like to follow in her footsteps one day.”
While his big sister has been a gymnast for over half her life, Cooper started his sport by chance. His friend Dylan Dohm, who lived down the street, invited him to a BMX track in 2017. At first, his father, Todd, wasn’t a fan of the idea.
“You usually think of motorcycles when you hear BMX,” Todd said. “But this is actually bicycle racing.”
When Cooper tried it for the first time he was hooked. Just like his big sister with gymnastics, he seemed to take to it from the very beginning.
The only issue is that the closest track in Mississippi is 2 and a half hours away in Jackson. So at least three times a week they take a trip across state lines to the Gretna BMX Raceway in Louisiana, not far from the New Orleans Superdome. Although Cooper sees a lot less track time than most kids he competes against, you wouldn’t be able to tell from his accomplishments.
BMX isn’t as popular in Mississippi as other states like California and Florida, so it only has one district that Cooper competes in. This year, he was named the state champion for his age group.
Last year, Cooper raced in one of the largest BMX competitions in the country, The Grands. It’s known for having racers from all over the globe. One of the biggest races is the ROC, or Race of Champions with BMX state champions from across the nation. Cooper won his age group and gets to sport a bright red plate on his bike showing that’s he’s No. 1.
“It’s the best of the best,” Cooper said. He said that the Grands is his favorite race of all.
The family will be in Tulsa, Oklahoma, through the Thanksgiving holiday for the 2019 Grands, which Cooper has been training for since he won last year. He trains five days a week for up to two hours and hopes to defend his title.
“I want to try and win the ROC back-to-back. I don’t think that’s been done before.” Cooper said.
Between being a mom and dad, and chauffeurs to every event, practice and competition, Sally and Todd are their kids’ biggest cheerleaders. Sometimes they even coordinate outfits.
“At my competitions, my mom, dad and brother wear black shirts with ‘Team Sadie Rose’ in pink on the back. For Cooper, we wear his ROC shirt that says Cooper to support him,” Sadie Rose said.
Cooper added that he recalls his mom jumping up and down at races cheering him on. Both say although they’re supportive of their sports, their parents are supportive of them doing what they love and don’t force anything on them.
“There’s a lot of parents that really push their kids hard and it makes them not like it anymore,” Sadie Rose said. “Mom and Dad don’t do that. They just want us to do our best and they support us doing things we love.”
When Sally was younger she was a gymnast and Todd raced bikes long distance professionally, but they said that it didn’t play a factor into what their kids have passions for.
“We just want them to be happy in what they do,” Sally said. “They’ve played every sport, we’ve taken them to art galleries and symphonies. We just want to immerse them in everything. We wouldn’t care if they were science whizzes or athletes. We’re just proud of them for doing what they love. I’m just shocked that we got so lucky.”
This time next week, the Joachims could add another trophy to their collection or they could come home empty handed. In the end, the trophies and medals aren’t really what matters to this family.
“Our goal is to raise good, big-hearted kids,” Todd said. “We have two kids who are kind to others, who are smart and healthy. That’s what really matters.”
This story was originally published November 27, 2019 at 10:00 PM.