At 14 years old, most teenagers are thinking about how to spend their summer break, hanging out with friends or preparing for eighth grade. Scotts Valley’s own Kyle Schottgen is preparing to represent the United States on the world stage thanks to the training he’s received from Vern Vargas, owner of Vargas Academy of Gymnastics Arts.
The Scotts Valley Middle School student recently captured first place in trampoline at the USA Gymnastics National Championships in Tulsa, Okla., held June 21-27. The victory marked the biggest accomplishment of his young career—and helped earn him a coveted spot on the U.S. Junior National Team.
“It was a very big accomplishment because I’ve never done that before,” Schottgen said of his national title.
His success didn’t stop there. Earlier this spring, Schottgen won first place in both trampoline and double mini at the Elite Challenge, cementing his status as one of the nation’s top young trampoline athletes. In November, he’ll travel to Nanjing, China, to compete at the 39th World Trampoline Gymnastics Championships after qualifying in both trampoline and double mini.
Vargas is psyched to have his student representing his studio in this discipline. Perhaps even more impressive, he’ll be the youngest athlete on the Junior National Team.
“I’ve been doing gymnastics since I was very young,” Schottgen said. “When we moved here in 2016, I was in the parkour program.”
After attending a gymnastics summer camp in 2021, coaches noticed something special.
“I was asked to join the team,” he recalled. “Ever since then, I just kept evolving through the levels.”
His favorite event is trampoline, but Schottgen also competes in double mini, an event that combines speed, power and precision.
Trampoline events involve athletes using trampolines that can propel them more than 40 feet into the air, where they perform double- and triple-twisting somersaults. Tumbling uses elevated rod-floor runways that allow athletes to jump more than 10 feet and perform a variety of acrobatic maneuvers. In the double-mini competition, the athlete runs briefly, leaps onto a small two-level trampoline, performs an aerial maneuver, and dismounts onto a landing mat.
Trampoline was added to the Olympic Games in 2000, and at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, the USA had its first athlete in history advance to the finals.
The routines last only seconds, but the physical and mental preparation takes years.
“There are injuries,” Schottgen admitted matter-of-factly. “I’ve sprained a couple of ankles, but luckily I haven’t broken anything.”
The physical challenges, however, are only part of the equation.
“Sometimes your body feels great, and sometimes it won’t,” he said. “But overall, this sport makes you a stronger person physically and mentally.”
His coach, Vern Vargas, has been instrumental in that growth.
“Vern’s great,” Schottgen said. “He’s very supportive and has great knowledge of the sport. It’s very helpful when you’re trying to become an elite athlete.”
Vargas has watched Schottgen mature from a promising young gymnast into one of the country’s rising stars.
“He made the world team in both trampoline and double mini,” Vargas said. “He’s one of the youngest athletes going to Worlds.”
Schottgen is quick to credit others for helping him reach this point.
Former teammates Taj Gleitsman and Nate Swanepoel, who have since moved away for college, were the first two Vargas athletes to qualify for the national team and continue to inspire him.
“They were very talented athletes,” Schottgen said. “I definitely look up to them and try to be as good as they were—and even better.”
That drive has fueled a schedule few teenagers would envy.
Before leaving for China, Schottgen will attend a national team training camp, likely at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs or at Southlake Gymnastics Academy in Texas, home to one of the country’s premier trampoline facilities.
Then comes the trip to China.
For Schottgen, it will be more than his first World Championships. It will also be his first opportunity to represent Team USA internationally.
One of his parents will accompany him overseas, and younger sister Eliana, 10, who also competes in gymnastics, may be making the trip as well.
Schottgen knows those opportunities don’t come without sacrifice. International travel, training camps, coaching and competition expenses are entirely borne by athletes’ families and are all in preparation for the potential of qualifying for the Olympics.
“That’s one of my goals,” he said.
Before high school even begins, he’s already thinking beyond it. Unlike traditional artistic gymnastics, trampoline and tumbling isn’t offered through California high school athletics, making year-round club training essential for elite competitors.
Despite his growing list of accomplishments, Schottgen remains refreshingly humble.
Asked what advice he’d give younger athletes, he paused before answering.
“Don’t give up,” he said. “There are going to be hard days. That’s when you get better.”
He encourages young athletes to listen to coaches, accept constructive criticism and remember that everyone learns differently.
“If something’s not working, try a different angle,” he said. “Find what works for you. It’s different for everybody.”
It’s advice that reaches beyond gymnastics. Schottgen played baseball, soccer, football and basketball before focusing on trampoline. Rather than those sports helping gymnastics, he believes it’s been the opposite.
“My skills and fitness from gymnastics definitely helped in those sports,” he said.
That foundation has carried him farther than he ever imagined—from a summer camp participant to national champion, from Scotts Valley to Tulsa, and now to China.
In November, when Schottgen steps onto the trampoline wearing the red, white and blue, he’ll be representing much more than himself. He’ll be making the city of Scotts Valley, the state of California and the entire country proud.
