Jake Dalton

1.1. Childhood and Family

Jacob William Dalton was born on August 19, 1991, in Reno, Nevada. He grew up in Sparks, Nevada, as the son of Tim and Denise Dalton.

1.2. Academic and Early Training

Dalton attended Spanish Springs High School. During his early training, he honed his skills at Gym Nevada under the guidance of coaches Wanda Fredericks and Andrew Pileggi. After graduating from high school, he earned an NCAA scholarship to compete for the University of Oklahoma in 2009, joining the Oklahoma Sooners team. While competing at the collegiate level, Dalton earned All-America honors. In 2011, he notably won both the NCAA men's gymnastics floor and vault titles, marking significant achievements in his university career.

2.1. Domestic and International Competitions

Dalton established himself early on as a strong competitor in domestic championships. He became the U.S. National vault champion in both 2009 and 2011, and also claimed the U.S. National floor champion title in 2011. In the same year, he won the All-Around Gold medal at the Winter Cup Challenge.

His international career saw him contribute significantly to the United States team. In 2010, at the Pan American Gymnastics Championships in Guadalajara, he earned a gold medal with the team and a bronze medal in the floor exercise.
The following year, Dalton was a key member of the USA team that secured a bronze medal at the 2011 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships held in Tokyo, Japan.

In February 2013, Dalton continued his strong performance at the 2013 Winter Cup, where he won gold medals in the floor exercise, rings, and the all-around competition. Later that year, in August, he won a bronze medal at the P&G National Championships, which helped him secure a place on the World Championships team. At the 2013 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Antwerp, he achieved a silver medal in the floor exercise, finishing behind the then 17-year-old Japanese newcomer, Kenzo Shirai.

Dalton also excelled at the Pacific Rim Championships. In 2012, at the event in Everett, he won gold medals in both the team competition and the floor exercise. He replicated this success at the 2016 Pacific Rim Championships, also held in Everett, again securing gold medals for the team and in the floor exercise.

At the 2014 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Nanning, Dalton earned two bronze medals: one with the team and another in the vault event. In 2015, Dalton was recovering from a minor shoulder labrum tear and did not compete in the P&G National Championships that year.

2.2. Olympic Appearances

On July 1, 2012, it was officially announced that Jake Dalton would be a member of the United States men's gymnastics team for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. The New York Times noted that the selected team roster was widely considered to be exceptionally strong, with high hopes of becoming the first United States men's team to win Olympic gold since the 1984 Los Angeles Games. Despite these high expectations, the United States men's gymnastics team, with Dalton as a member, ultimately placed fifth in the team competition at the London Olympics.

On June 25, 2016, Dalton was again selected to join the five-man United States men's gymnastics team for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. His teammates included Sam Mikulak, John Orozco (who was later replaced by Danell Leyva due to injury), Alex Naddour, and Chris Brooks. Prior to the main event, Dalton had already placed second in the vault at the 2016 Gymnastics Olympic Test Event.

2.3. Retirement

Jake Dalton officially announced his retirement from competitive gymnastics on August 9, 2017. Following his retirement from professional competition, Dalton shifted his primary focus to managing gymnastics gyms.

4.1. Parallel Bars Skill 'Dalton'

The skill named after Jake Dalton on the parallel bars is known simply as the "Dalton". Its technical description in the Code of Points is a "Roll bwd. with ½ t. tuck to hang." This skill holds an 'E' difficulty rating, valued at 0.5 points, as per the 2025-2028 Code of Points. The "Dalton" was officially added to the Code of Points in Newsletter 30 in 2016, following its performance at the 2015 World Challenge Cup in Doha.