Essay about Gabby Douglas The First African-American...

Gabby Douglas was the first African-American female gymnast in Olympic history to become the individual All-Around champion. In the 2012 Olympic Games, she won gold in the team competition and the individual competition. She is a gymnastics phenom. From the beginning of her career to where she is today, she has been a true trooper through everything. Gabrielle Douglas is an inspiration to me and many others because she overcame being homeless,moved in with a new family, and won Olympic gold in gymnastics. On December 31, 1995, Gabrielle Christina Victoria Douglas also known as Flying Squirrel, was born in Virginia Beach, Virginia (Douglas, Gabrielle). Her dad, Timothy Douglas and mom, Natalie Hawkins were experienced parents†¦show more content†¦Excalibur was a horrifying experience for Gabby. There, she was taunted. The other girls told her to get a nose job, and also called her there slave. Excalibur denied any of the accusations about Gabby being taunted (Neporent, Liz) . Gabby changed gyms and soon became the state champ in 2004 after only four years of formal training (Gabby Douglas). She continually won first at all of the meets (Gabby Douglas).Gabby’s mom noticed that her talent was becoming too much for the gym she was training at. After watching Shawn Johnson at the 2008 Olympics and being compared to Dominique Dawes, one of the greatest African American gymnast, she knew that the Olympics were a perfect fit for her (Schoeller, Martin). The only issue she had with getting to the Olympics was her current coaching. She needed to go to West Des Moines, Iowa to train Liang Chow. He is an elite gymnastics coach known for coaching Shaun Johnson and many other gymnastics icons. With Chow, Gabby could master the necessary skills to be able to qualify for the 2012 Olympic Games. Gabby left her home at age 14. Her mom flew with her up to Chow’s Gym and scheduled a meeting with him. There Chow told Gabby that she would be living with a host f amily for the time she was in Iowa. At the gym that day Missy Parton introduced herself to Gabby as her her host mom (Douglas, Gabrielle). Missy took Gabby home and introduced her to her husband and three girls. Gabby and the girls hitShow MoreRelatedThe Nationalistic Portrayals Of American1849 Words   |  8 Pagesand Gold: The Nationalistic Portrayals of American Olympic Athletes in the U.S. Sport Media There is arguably no other international event in the world that celebrates sport more than the Olympics. The modern Olympic Games are perhaps the most prominent media event in the world capturing the attention of billions of people around the globe on a recurring basis (Walters Murphy, 2008). Zaharopoulos (2007) noted that now that billions of people view the Olympic Games on television, it has becomeRead MoreThe Movie The Star Spangled Banner 1991 Words   |  8 Pagesis elected as our president. When the quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers Colin Kaepernick decided to not stand for the playing of the national anthem in the pre-season game of the NFL, he was the first athlete to vividly illustrate his outrage over the police brutality stirring within the American population. His actions have led to a wave of athlete protests who are joining to exercise their constitutional rights and help fight against an issue bigger than sports. However, there are many citizens