The 2016 Summer Olympics at Rio are less than a month away and America is finding out exactly who will be representing the United States and hopefully bringing home the gold in their respective sports.
This week, we discovered the five young women who stuck the landing and earned a spot on the US Women’s Gymnastics team. The team will be featuring some returning Olympians, such as defending champion Gabby Douglas and the unforgettable Aly Raisman, who also helped secure the gold for USA in London four years ago. There is also the addition of world bars champion Madison Kocian and three time world champion Simone Biles. But America is already falling in love with the human emoji, a.k.a. the youngest member of the Fearsome Five, Laurie Hernandez.
Hernandez is a 16 year old from Old Bridge, New Jersey, and despite an injury in 2014, she showed she has the right stuff to take her talents to Rio.
Despite being the youngest, Hernandez proved at the Olympic Trials, that she is just as talented as the other members of her team and is even speculated to compete with Biles in the all-around finals at the games next month.
She may be new to the Olympics team, but her steady rise to the top hasn’t gone unnoticed by gymnastics officials. Last year, she earned the title of junior all-around US and earned the trip to the Olympics in just her first year competing at the senior level. Some officials had been observing Hernandez’s growth in various different programs, even making sure that she was training as hard as older athletes in preparation for her chance to compete for a spot on the team.
Hernandez had worked diligently with her coach Maggie Haney and even with a mental trainer in Texas to help her mentally and physically prepare for the chance she now has. As serious as her training has been, it hasn’t let the teenager stop from embracing her highly bubbly personality. She maintains a very excited energy even in interviews and isn’t afraid to show herself having fun with her new teammates, as seen in the video she uploaded after the team was officially announced.
When you find out you’re going to the olympics>> pic.twitter.com/st3A26seDM
— Laurie Hernandez ➶ (@lzhernandez02) July 11, 2016
Laurie Hernandez alongside Team USA is expected to bring home the gold in Rio next month. Make sure you watch and support Team USA to bring home the glory!
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