Top 5 Olympic moments of Aly Raisman
Aly Raisman is one of the most decorated Olympians in the field of gymnastics. The 27-year-old was the captain of the US artistic gymnastics team at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, which fetched the nation gold medals.
Apart from her Olympic achievements, Aly Raisman was also a member of the USA team that won gold medals in the 2011 and 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships.
Born to Jewish parents in the Boston suburb of Massachusetts, Aly Raisman began gymnastics at the tender age of two. She was inspired to try her feet in gymnastics after watching 'Magnificent Seven' win a gold medal in the women's team competition at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
After Aly Raisman announced her retirement following her exploits at the 2016 London Olympics, she came forward as one of the leading names to be sexually abused by former physician Larry Nassar. Following that revelation, Raisman was awarded the Arthur Ashe Courage Award in 2018.
Aly Raisman also participated in Season 16 of Dancing with the Stars in 2013, where she finished fourth. She also released her memoir, 'Fierce: How Competing for Myself Changed Everything' in November 2017.
Without further ado, here are the top five Olympic moments of Aly Raisman's career:
#5 Silver medal in 2016 Rio Olympics - Individual floor exercise
With a score of 15.275, Aly Raisman qualified for the final of the 2016 Rio Olympics individual floor event after finishing second in the qualifiers behind her countrymate Simon Biles.
Dancing to the Red Poppy, Raisman posted a score of 15.500 in the final to lose the top honors to Simone Biles. The audience clapped at Raisman's intricate movements as she performed backward double flips in the layout position and double pike with ease.
Although she failed to defend her gold medal title, Raisman became the first American woman since Shannon Miller (1992 and 1996) to win consecutive medals in the individual categories of gymnastics in the Olympics.
#4 Silver medal in 2016 Rio Olympics - Individual all-around
On the first day of the gymnastics competition at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Raisman qualified for the individual all-around final after impressing the judges with a score of 60.607. Gabby Douglas finished third but couldn't see herself competing in the final owing to the two-per-country rule.
Raisman had a lot riding on her as she had missed out on the bronze medal in London in the individual all-around event via a tiebreaker. On the day of the final, she played to her strengths on the vault and floor by scoring 15.633 and 15.433 points respectively. On the bars and beam, Raisman accumulated 14.166 and 14.866 points respectively.
After her performance on the floor, Raisman burst into tears as it guaranteed her a silver medal. USA's Simone Biles once again picked up the gold medal and Russia's Aliya Mustafina followed it up with a bronze to complete the podium standings.
#3 Gold medal in 2012 London Olympics - Individual Floor Exercise
Aly Raisman won her first and only individual Olympic gold medal in artistic gymnastics in London, courtesy of her scintillating performances in Women's Floor Exercise.
On her Olympic debut, Raisman impressed the judges by posting a score of 15.600 and became the first American woman to finish atop the podium on the floor. Her performance was dedicated to the 11 Israeli Olympians killed at the 1972 Munich Olympics.
#2 Gold medal in 2012 London Olympics - Team's Event
Nicknamed the 'Fierce Five,' Aly Raisman alongside Gabby Douglas, McKayla Maroney, Kyla Ross, and Jordyn Wieber finished first in the qualifiers to help the US reserve a spot in the women's team event at the 2012 London Olympics.
Raisman posted a score of 14.933 on the balance beam and 15.300 on the floor. Gabby Douglas performed in all four categories and with Raisman's scores, the USA posted a total of 183.596. It helped them finish first as Russia came second with 178.530 and Romania third with 176.414.
#1 Gold medal in 2016 Rio Olympics - Team's Event
Continuing their sublime form, Team USA once again qualified for the final of the women's team event by finishing first in the qualifiers. This time Raisman participated in the vault, balance beam, and floor exercise, posting a score of 15.833, 15.000, and 15.366 respectively.
Uneven bars specialists Madison Kocian and Gabby Douglas helped cover the team's weakness as the USA successfully defended their gold medal. Their total this time was a majestic 184.897, with Russia finishing second at 176.688 and China third at 176.003.