My Idol

In the 2012 Olympics, the gymnastics team was Gabby Douglas, Aly Raisman, Jordan Wieber, McKayla Maroney and Kyla Ross. Most people have heard of Gabby Douglas who came out of nowhere and won the gold in the All-Around, but the other four are not as popular. Aly Raisman qualified to the all-around finals and is known for her gold medal floor routine. (I had a different cut of her floor music the past two years) McKayla Maroney received second place on vault and is known by gymnasts as having a higher vault than men gymnasts, but known to the general public by her “unimpressed” face. Kyla Ross was not a stand out, but is still competing at the elite level today.

Even though I look up to all five of these gymnasts, my favorite has to be Jordyn Wieber. Jordyn Wieber was the gymnast everyone predicted would be the one to win the Olympics, but she did not even make it to the individual finals. This Olympics was a little different from the past as only the two girls with the highest all-around from each team could qualify for the finals. So even if you received third place all-around during the qualifications, if the girls who won first and second place were on the same team as you, you would not qualify. This is similar to what happened to Jordyn. She placed fourth all-around, but Gabby and Aly placed higher. Although she didn’t get to compete in the finals, the next day she still helped win the gold medal for the team. (For more information go here)

I admire Jordyn for this reason. After not making it to the finals, she came in the next day, changed her mind-set, did her best and cheered for her team. She did not mope and lose her confidence, but stepped it up even more to prove to everyone she deserved to be there. This is something that is so important in gymnastics. If you have a bad day, you come in the next day and work even harder. Even going from one event to another, or one turn to the next, you need to figure out a way to move on.

Jordyn Wieber - Image curtesy of Zap2it.com

After the Olympics, Jordyn wanted to go to college at UCLA and be on the college gymnastics team. Unfortunately, she had accepted a professional sponsorship to Adidas, causing her to be ineligible to compete for the team. Even though she can’t compete, she acts as the team manager, helping to move mats and motivating the team. Jordyn still goes in early to train by herself since rules prevent her from training with the team. 

I love how you can see how much Jordyn loves gymnastics and how passionate she is about it. She is such a great model to me because she showed me to hold my head high, no matter what my performance and my scores are. Disappointments sometimes happen, but it is up to me to work harder and make the best of each situation.

If you watch a UCLA gymnastics meet, you will see Jordyn on the floor cheering on her teammates. Since she is still training, I hope to see her in competitions in the future.