Gabby Douglas
Selena Farr
Gabby Douglas , "The Flying Squirrel".
Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas is famous because she was the first African American to win the individual all-around event.Gabby first started her training in formal gymnastics when she was 6 years old and she won a state championship by the time she was 8 years old. She had a nickname of the “flying Squirrel". When she was 15 years old she had to move away from her hometown and family, so that she could begin her training with a world famous Olympic trainer. She was chosen to compete with the U.S. Olympic women's gymnastics team at the 2012 Summer Olympics. She also won a team gold medal with teammates Ally Raisman, Kyla Ross, Mckayla Maroney and Jordyn Wieber. Her first experience with gymnastics came at the age of 3. When she 3 years old she had her first experience in gymnastics. She did a perfect straight cartwheel using a style that she learned from her older sister, Arielle. Arielle was also a gymnast. By the time she was 4 years old Gabby had taught herself how to do a one-handed cartwheel.
Gabby Douglas Gymnastic Champion
In 2004, she was named a Virginia State Gymnastic Champion. At the televised meet held in Massachusetts in 2010 Gabby made her debut on the national scene, placing fourth all-around. She also placed third on the balance beam, sixth on vault and ninth all-around in the junior division. In the 2010 Cover Girl classic in Chicago, Illinois, Gabby went on to win the silver medal on balance beam. At another event Gabby was fifth all-around and won her a share of the U.S. team gold medal. By the time she was 16 years old Gabby had proven herself a champion. She was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated in early July of 2012, along with the rest of the U.S. Olympic women's gymnastics team, and on one of five covers released by TIME Magazine that same month.