“It Was Really Hard”: Medical Student Courtney McGregor Makes Commonwealth Games Debut 12 Years After Injury

New Zealand gymnast Courtney McGregor made her Commonwealth Games debut 12 years after a knee injury forced her to withdraw from the Glasgow 2014 Games before competition. The Rio 2016 Olympian returned to elite gymnastics after a five-year break while completing her final year of medical school, balancing clinical placements with elite training. She spent five years away from elite gymnastics while studying medicine before returning to competition.

In an interview with Olympics.com, McGregor said her days often began with hospital placements at 6:30 a.m. before evening training sessions that stretched until 8:30 p.m.

Courtney McGregor was 15 when she qualified for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, but a knee injury forced her to withdraw the day before competition. She later represented New Zealand at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games before retiring from elite gymnastics in 2020 after an Achilles injury, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the demands of medical school shifted her focus away from competition.

McGregor returned to elite gymnastics in April 2025, rebuilt her form through national competitions, and won the national title in September before earning selection for New Zealand's Commonwealth Games team. In an interview with Olympics.com, she said she wanted "to take the opportunity to see other sports and really enjoy myself" after years of balancing medicine with elite gymnastics.

During her final year of medicine at the University of Auckland, Courtney McGregor spent her days on clinical placements before heading to evening training sessions. "I'm at the hospital from 6:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., I race to the gym, try and eat something, and then train until around 8:30 p.m. Then rinse and repeat. It was rough," she told Olympics.com.

Speaking to Stuff, McGregor said working in the hospital gave her "a lot of perspective" on being healthy enough to compete. She added that medical training helped her better understand nutrition, injury management, and training loads, giving her "a medical perspective on things as an athlete."

McGregor told Stuff that returning to elite gymnastics later in her career required a different approach to training. "I'm a little bit of an older gymnast now, so training loads are a little bit lower and prioritizing quality over quantity, and seeing that pay off is pretty cool," she said. She added that more gymnasts are now competing into their 20s and even 30s, reflecting what she described as a changing culture in the sport.

Before earning selection for the Commonwealth Games, McGregor finished fifth in the vault at the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup and won a silver medal in the vault at the DTB Pokal competition, according to Stuff.

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Representing New Zealand has become about more than results for Courtney McGregor. Speaking to Olympics.com, the artistic gymnast said the national team places a strong emphasis on unity and embracing Māori culture alongside competition.

"We have a lot of the values of multiculturalism coming through in our team; we're all about unity. We do a team haka to welcome everyone into the village," McGregor said. She added that she delivered "a little speech in Te Reo Māori" despite not being fluent because "one of the main themes of our culture is to give everything a go." Describing Mana as a value centred on pride, she said the team aims "to go on the floor and show that to everyone."

McGregor also told Stuff that representing New Zealand remains one of her biggest motivations for returning to elite gymnastics. "The New Zealand team is such an amazing environment to be part of," she said, adding that the country's team culture is "really something special to be part of."

(Rh/TP/MSM)