"I'm not done pushing the boundaries, I'm determined to make every moment count" - Gabby Douglas on gymnastics comeback
Legendary gymnast Gabby Douglas recently confirmed her comeback in her social media post. The 28-year-old was on an extended sabbatical after the Rio Games in 2016. Since then, she has been away from the spotlight. However, now that Douglas will make her competitive return, her eyes are set on making it to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Douglas made headlines in 2022 when she was spotted training with athletes at WOGA. It gave a blow to Douglas’s comeback rumors. Moreover, in February 2023, her coach Valeri Liukin confirmed to NBC that Douglas has been training at his gym. Months later in July, the three-time Olympic gold medallist confirmed via Instagram that she had resumed training and was targeting the Paris Olympics 2024.
Recently, Gabby Douglas shared another Instagram post, giving a glimpse of her training session for this year’s Gymnastics Championships. She expressed her happiness about returning and cheered herself for “never giving up.”
“wow guys, what a journey so far. it’s had its ups and downs, but i’m not done pushing the boundaries. i’m determined to make every moment count! SO happy to get back out on the competition floor and enjoy this sport that i fell in love with as a little girl. here’s to never giving up on our dreams. let’s do this,” Douglas wrote.
Douglas’ first Gymnastics Championship after eight years is scheduled on February 24 at the Winter Cup in Louisville, Kentucky, the first elite gymnastics meet of the year. Moreover, she will be the oldest gymnast at the championship at 28 years old.
In an interview with Now, Douglas revealed that she has been training on all four apparatuses. Nevertheless, she is focusing a little more on uneven bars, which is her signature event.
Gabby Douglas’ journey as a gymnast so far
Gabby Douglas proudly boasts her title of being the first African-American to become the Olympic individual all-around champion from the 2012 London Olympics. She is also the first US gymnast to win gold in both the individual all-around and team competitions at the same Olympics.
Douglas possesses two Olympic gold medals from the 2012 London Olympics - in the team and all-around events. In the 2016 Rio Olympics, she bagged another gold in the team event.
She won a gold medal in the team event at the 2011 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. Moreover, in the 2015 World Championship, she bagged a gold and silver medal in the team and all-around events. Douglas is also the 2016 AT&T American Cup all-around champion.
If Gabby Douglas makes it to the 2024 Olympic team, she will become the first American woman since Dominique Dawes to be a part of three Olympic teams.