Thousands of backflips and multiple leg surgeries later, Bobby Alessio is taking social media by storm.  

Alessio, a redshirt freshman, is one of Penn State men’s gymnastics’ young and rising stars. Since posting his first gymnastics-related video over the summer, Alessio has gained over 100,000 followers on Instagram. Through his social media presence, he’s built a strong community, along with an overall greater appreciation for men’s gymnastics.  

“Gymnastics was on a huge decline before the Olympics. By posting, I just hope I can do my part and grow the sport I love,” Alessio said.  

For Alessio, it seems like it was only yesterday that he took his first steps into the world of gymnastics. After being inspired by his sister at the age of 5, Alessio began his career as a gymnast, and since then, he has never looked back.  

“I started to get involved in gymnastics because my sister did gymnastics. Growing up, my sister was always an inspiration to me, so I knew I wanted to do something she did. One day, I saw her do a backflip off the beam, and I thought it was the coolest thing,” Alessio said. “I immediately talked to my mom and said, ‘I really want to do this,’ and so she put me in.” 

After starting his gymnastics career at the recreational level, Alessio was immediately noticed by the club coach, who encouraged him to start competing.   

“The head coach of the club team saw something in me. I am not sure what, but he told my parents that he wanted me to join the team. At that point, I was only about 5 or 6, and then it pretty much just went from there,” Alessio said.  

After years of competing and developing new skills, Alessio flourished in the gym. By the time he reached middle school, he knew he wanted to compete at the collegiate level. Through some connections, Alessio became acquainted with the Penn State men’s gymnastics program and began to show a strong interest in what they could offer.  

“Competing at the collegiate level was always a goal for me. When I was in middle school, I would go to these competitions and see all these college gymnasts and how hype they were getting, and I just knew that was what I wanted,” Alessio said. “I knew Penn State’s assistant head coach, Tony [Beck], because he was a part of the region we competed in. He was one of the reasons why I decided to give Penn State an official look.”  

During the recruiting process, Alessio visited many schools and attended numerous camps. However, once he came to Penn State for his official visit, he immediately knew that Penn State was where he belonged. From there, everything else just fell into place.  

“I went to some camps at other colleges and had official visits, but once I visited Penn State, I just loved it and the coaching staff. After my visit, Tony gave me my official offer, and I immediately committed,” Alessio said. “It just felt right. It was a dream, and I am so happy I was able to get to this level.”  

As an official collegiate athlete, it wasn’t until this past summer that Alessio decided to make his first gymnastics-related video on Instagram. Alessio noticed a spike in popularity for men’s gymnastics after Penn State alumni Stephen Nedoroscik captured the world’s attention, winning the bronze medal in the pommel horse. Alessio knew it was the perfect time to share his skills with the world. Little did he know how much his posts would take off.  

“I knew people would be interested in watching gymnastics videos because the Olympics was going on, so I decided to make some challenge videos. I think my original video was of me trying different Simone Biles skills. It was just simple stuff like that,” Alessio said. “In my first week of posting, I think I gained about 50k on Instagram. It was crazy because I would post videos, and I knew it was getting a million views every time.”  

While having a strong social media presence has its perks, Alessio truly only posts for one reason.  

“I honestly just post to grow the sport,” Alessio revealed. “Every follower I get is more than just a follower. For me, it is a great way to contribute to the gymnastics community.”  

With the growth of his social media platform, Alessio has also gained tremendous support to get him through some of his more challenging times. In the past two years, Alessio has been sidelined from gymnastics due to two major leg injuries that required numerous surgeries.  

“Last season, I was coming back from a broken leg, so I decided to redshirt that year because I wanted to take time to rest my body. I was excited to come back this year, and then in December, we had an intrasquad competition, and I did my first pass and messed it up,” Alessio explained. “I ended up hyperextending both of my knees and had to get three surgeries on my one leg.  Now, I have 12-inch-long incisions on both sides of my legs.”  

For Alessio, injuries are common. However, these past two injuries were much more difficult to come back from, both physically and mentally. This last injury almost ended Alessio’s gymnastics career for good. 

“I have been hurt a lot. I don’t think there has been a year since I was 8 years old that I haven’t broken a bone or done something wrong to my body. It definitely takes a toll,” Alessio said. “With this most recent injury, it was worse because I wasn’t sure if I tore my ACL as well. That was stressful, not knowing if I was going to be out for the year. At the beginning of this injury, I was mentally done. I had told myself before this that if I got another injury, it would be hard to continue gymnastics.”  

Without the ability to compete, Alessio has struggled a lot mentally. He faced a lot of doubt and uncertainty surrounding his career and future as a gymnast. On top of the confusion, Alessio has also been faced with the everyday physical challenges of trying to rehab his legs. Fortunately, Alessio has had a strong support system to help him through it all.  

“My teammates and coaches are great everyday people to talk to. If I am ever feeling down, I can talk to them and my family,” Alessio said. “Especially while I was struggling with my injuries, I always knew I could talk to my parents or my sister. I feel like I can tell them all anything.”  

While Alessio initially grappled with the idea of whether to continue his gymnastics career, he was quickly reminded of what the sport has done for him as a person.  

“I think for me, gymnastics has built so many valuable characteristics like discipline and patience. It is not a sport where you can learn a skill in a day. It takes time and effort,” Alessio said. “When I am doing gymnastics, my mind is just separated from everything else.”  

As Alessio continues to recover, he maintains high hopes of being able to compete in the pommel horse sometime later this season. As for now, he is just taking it one day at a time. 

“Some days are easier than others. I think what keeps me going, though, is that I just love gymnastics,” Alessio said. “I mean, I get to do what I love every day, so I can’t ask for anything more.”