Melanie Roach

Weight Lifter
Roach Gymnastics
Sumner, Wash.

A Bronze medalist in the 2007 Pan American Games, weight lifter Melanie Roach is the only U.S. woman to have lifted more than twice her weight in the clean & jerk event. A former gymnast, Roach also is the co-owner, with her husband, of Roach Gymnastics in Sumner, Wash. “To be a good business owner,” she says, “you have to put in the work, have the vision, and be goal-oriented. It’s the same in athletics. You’re never off the clock. There’s always something you can do better.”
In June, when Roach moved her 17-employee, $288,000 gym into a new, larger space, she had the wall painted with the Beijing Olympics logo, the five-ring symbol, and her name. When she gets home, she’ll add either “Olympian” or “Olympic Medalist.” Says Roach: “I’m O.K. either way. It’ll be an amazing experience.” That’s not to say she doesn’t have a preference.