These days, Strug is a 43-year-old Jewish mom of two kids. Much has changed in the past 25 years (including, possibly, Strug’s perception of the event). Maybe being a father and teacher has made me soft, but all I could see was how Kerri Strug looked at her coach, Bela Karolyi, with pleading, terrified eyes, while he shouted back ‘You can do it!’ over and over again.” In a now-viral Facebook post, a dad named Byron Heath said he cheered Strug’s decision in 1996, but today has second thoughts: “I wasn’t as inspired watching it this time. (Strug, for what it’s worth, has previously pushed back against accusations she was bullied into doing the vault by her coach.) And while her determination remains undeniably powerful, watching Strug compete despite injury feels more like a tragedy than a triumph, especially in the wake of the horrific USA Gymnastics sexual abuse scandal, and other reports of the abusive relationships of gymnasts and coaches, including Karolyi. Thanks to the magic of YouTube, footage of Strug’s vault is available for anyone who wants to watch it. I don’t recall ever hearing about how her injuries forced her into immediate retirement - Strug never competed in gymnastics again. ” And, well, after a while, that was that. In the aftermath of her feat, Strug made the rounds on talk shows, graced a box of Wheaties and even made an appearance on “ Beverly Hills, 90210. But while Strug was busy making history that summer, I’m pretty sure 19-year-old me spent those months working at Zingerman’s Delicatessen and drinking Honey Brown lager.) (Like Strug, I, too, was barely an adult in 1996. “I cried,” I recall my hairdresser telling me the following day, as we discussed the previous night’s events. Recall, if you will, that in the mid-’90s, the internet was in its infancy, there was no such thing as social media and nobody had ever heard the term “viral video.” And yet, as I very clearly remember, everyone was talking about this. Strug’s decision to power through her pain and secure the gold was a HUGE DEAL at the time. with her family.At just 18 years old, Strug immediately became a national hero. Strug has authored two books and lives in Washington, D.C. During the 2004 Olympics, she served as a correspondent for Yahoo. She's now involved in the community through work with parents, kids and coaches throughout the country at various gymnastic camps and clubs. She later went on to serve as a spokesperson for the Special Olympics and the Children’s Miracle Network. What is Strug up to now?įollowing her retirement, Strug earned a master's degree in sociology from Stanford after transferring from UCLA. She earned silver in the 1991 Indianapolis and 1994 Dortmund championships and bronze in 1995. What are Strug's other accolades?īesides her Olympic success, Strug medaled three times in the world championships. When she was 15, she was the youngest American on the Olympic squad in 1992. Strug began gymnastics at age 8, when she followed in the footsteps of her older sister and brother. How many Olympic medals did Strug win?īefore winning gold in Atlanta, Strug and her team brought home bronze after the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona. As a professional, she could not compete for the school's gymnastics team so she worked as a team manager. Shortly after the 1996 Olympics, Strug retired and enrolled at UCLA. success At which Olympics did Strug last compete? So what has Strug been up to since that moment in Atlanta?
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