Chelsea's parents, Lisa and Ray, first enrolled her in a gymnastics class when she was four years old, after she was diagnosed with the disorder. Four years later, then-8-year-old Chelsea was training for the Special Olympics. Her parents persisted in finding a top-level coach. They found that coach in Pombo, who said that she had to teach Chelsea from the ground up, but found a more-than-willing student.
"Chelsea's ability in the beginning was not very good,'' Pombo said. "She was very excited, but physically, she could barely walk on the balance beam one direction and back without falling. The obstacle in the beginning was strength. She just lacked muscle tone."
Pombo also pushed Chelsea to challenge her limitations.