# Natalia Escalera

Natalia Isabel Escalera Cárdenas (born 3 July 2002) is a Mexican artistic gymnast. She is the 2021 Pan American champion and the 2023 Pan American Games bronze medalist on the vault. She represented Mexico at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

## Early life

Escalera was born in Ensenada in 2002 and began gymnastics when she was three years old at Baja Dynamo, where she still trains.

## Gymnastics career
### 2017

At the 2017 Mexican Championships, Escalera finished third in the all-around in the junior division. Then at the Central American Sports Festival, she finished seventh in the all-around and won a silver medal on the vault.

### 2018–2019

Escalera became age-eligible for senior competition in 2018. She finished sixth at her first senior-level national championships. She was selected to represent Mexico at the 2018 Pan American Championships where she helped the team win the bronze medal.
At the 2019 Mexican Championships, Escalera placed twelfth in the all-around.

### 2021

At the 2021 Pan American Championships, Escalera finished fifth in the all-around and was less than 0.400 points away from winning a continental quota for the Olympic Games. She helped Mexico place second and qualified for three event finals, originally finishing second on vault behind Martina Dominici, fifth on uneven bars, and fifth on floor exercise. However, Dominici tested positive for a banned substance; as a result, her results were overturned, and Escalera was awarded the gold medal on vault. At the World Championships, she qualified for the vault final and placed seventh.

### 2022

Escalera began the 2022 season by winning the all-around silver medal behind Ahtziri Sandoval at the Mexican Championships. She then competed at the Pan American Championships where she helped Mexico place fourth as a team and qualify for the upcoming World Championships. Individually, she won a silver medal on the vault behind Karla Navas of Panama. At the Szombathely World Challenge Cup, she finished fourth on the uneven bars and fifth on the vault and floor exercise. She finished 32nd in the all-around during the qualification round of the World Championships, making her the third reserve for the all-around final.

### 2023

Escalera began the season by winning her first national all-around title. She then competed at the Pan American Championships where she won silver in the all-around behind Tiana Sumanasekera and also won three bronze medals on the vault, uneven bars, and floor exercise. Additionally, she helped the Mexican team win the silver medal behind the United States and secure qualification for the upcoming World Championships and Pan American Games. She then helped the Mexican team win the gold medal at the Central American & Caribbean Games. Individually, she won the silver medal on the floor exercise behind teammate Alexa Moreno.
At the 2023 World Championships, Escalera helped Mexico finish 14th in the qualification round. Although they did not qualify as a full team to the upcoming Olympic Games, they did earn Mexico a non-nominative berth. Escalera ended the year competing at the 2023 Pan American Games where she won bronze on vault behind Rebeca Andrade and Jordan Chiles.

### 2024

Escalera started the year competing at the Cottbus World Cup and placed fifth on vault and seventh on uneven bars. She also finished fifth on the vault at the Baku World Cup. In March, the Mexican Gymnastics Federation officially awarded Escalera the non-nominative Olympic berth they earned at the previous year's World Championships. She placed 52nd on uneven bars at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

## Competitive history

| Year | Event | Team | AA | VT | UB | FX |
| Junior ||||||||
| 2017 | Mexican Championships | | | | | |
| 2017 | Central American Sports Festival | | 7 | | | |
| Senior ||||||||
| 2018 | Mexican Championships | | 6 | | | |
| 2018 | Pan American Championships | | | | | |
| 2019 | Mexican Championships | | 12 | | | |
| 2021 |
| 2021 | Pan American Championships | | | | 4 | 4 |
| 2021 | World Championships | | | 7 | | |
| 2022 | Mexican Championships | | | | | |
| 2022 | Pan American Championships | 4 | 9 | | | |
| 2022 | Szombathely World Challenge Cup | | | 5 | 4 | 5 |
| 2022 | World Championships | | R3 | | | |
| 2023 | Mexican Championships | | | | | |
| 2023 | Pan American Championships | | | | | |
| 2023 | Central American & Caribbean Games | | 4 | | 5 | |
| 2023 | World Championships | 14 | | | | |
| 2023 | Pan American Games | 4 | 6 | | | |
| 2024 | Cottbus World Cup | | | 5 | 7 | |
| 2024 | Baku World Cup | | | 5 | | |
| 2024 | Olympic Games | | | | 52 | |