Richie Terwilliger followed his sister Krissy from martial arts into the sport of baton twirling, eventually becoming a state, regional, and national champion, and a nine-time member of Team USA who earned one gold and two bronze medals. In 2022, Terwilliger became a certified USTA coach and recently talked with Inside Loop about our sport and his future in it. Here's what he had to say:
Inside Loop: As a newly certified USTA coach, what would you say to other retired athletes to encourage them to become coaches and/or judges?
Terwilliger: Coaching and judging are both great ways to make a positive impact in the future of young athletes and participate in moving the sport forward. These positions also offer an avenue for retired athletes to keep enjoying the fun and challenge of baton twirling in a new and refreshing way. I had been exploring the idea of getting my coaching certification for a long time, and I'm so glad I finally did it. I was able to complete the entire Coach Level I training process through a one-day fun and interactive online workshop provided by USTA. USTA's certification processes provide strong foundations in baton-teaching fundamentals and business best practices, as well as access to a variety of useful resources. Although I am still exploring all the options for how I plan to use my professional certifications, I'm certain I will use these teachings and resources whichever way I move forward.
Inside Loop: If you could change one thing about the “state of our sport” today, what would that be?
Terwilliger: I would widely expand the accessibility of the sport. In the United States, competitive baton is a relatively niche sport that is often misunderstood or unknown by those outside of our community. While this offers the benefits of uniqueness, it also presents challenges to gaining sponsorships and the funding needed to reduce the financial hurdles required for athletes to be successful in the competitive baton arena. As an organization, we need to continue to adapt so we can create more opportunities for a diverse array of athletes to get involved. I'm proud to have been involved in USTA's recent rebranding efforts, which I believe was a strong step towards modernizing how we represent competitive twirling. It is my hope that this modernization is just the beginning of our efforts to encourage participation by groups that have not historically taken part in the sport at the same rates as others, such as men, adult athletes, and athletes that live in urban areas. There is so much more we can do to keep spreading awareness and attract participation, like growing the sport's social media presence, forming localized grassroots training programs, and encouraging athletes to share their talents in professional venues. I truly believe that competitive baton can and should be as popular as other mainstream sports - made accessible where anyone can enjoy what it has to offer.
Inside Loop: What are three things the twirling world doesn't know about you?
Terwilliger: I work for the U.S. Navy's Chemical, Biological, and Radiological Defense Division as a mechanical engineer. Our teams work to design, test, and field technologies that help protect people and places from weapons of mass destruction.
My family and I are all nitrox and advanced open water certified scuba divers who love the thrill and awe of experiencing the underwater world. Some of our favorite trips include shark diving in the Caribbean, cave diving in Mexico's Cenotes, open water reef diving in Indonesia, and live-a-boarding the Great Barrier Reef.
My sister, Krissy, and I have begun to experiment with performing baton, fire baton, and light staff professionally - challenging the conventional ideology of what baton twirling is and the ways it can be experienced. As the world continues to open safe and responsible venues, we are looking forward to performing at new events and making baton spinning more accessible and widely recognized.