Gabby Douglas Bio And Facts
Gabby Douglas
Gabrielle Christina Victoria Douglas, or Gabby Douglas, is an American Olympic Gymnast. Gabby was born in Newport News, Virginia and quickly picked up on gymnastics by perfecting the cartwheel at age three. At the 2012 Olympic Summer Games, Gabby Douglas became the first African-American in the history of the prestige Olympics to win the individual all-around event. Douglas also won gold medals at the 2012 and 2016 Olympic games with the United States of America team. Douglas’ passion for gymnastics started back when she was six years old and began training, Gabby then won her first state championship, Virginia State Gymnastics Championship, by the time she was eight. As Douglas grew older she began training with famous and well respected trainer coach Liang Chow, and left her hometown when we turned 14 to focus on gymnastics. Douglas made her debut nationally at the 2010 Nastia Liukin SuperGirl Cup, which was a televised gymnastics meet in Massachusetts.
- Birthdate: December 31,1995 (31-12-1995)
- Education: Oak Park High School
- Net Worth: $4 million
- Occupation: Gymnast
- Height: 5 ft 2 in. (1.5748 m)
- Weight: 108 lbs (48.98 kg)
- Years Active: 11
- Career Wins: 3 gold medals
- Nicknames: The Flying Squirrel
- Teams: USA Olympic Gymnastic team
Social Media
Gymnastics Career
Gabby Douglas started gymnastics around the age of and by the time she was eight, Douglas had won the level 4 all-around gymnastics title at the 2004 Virginia State Championships. Gabby continued training and worked her way to the 2012 London Olympics as a part of team USA. There Gabby helped the American women’s gymnastics team win their first gold medal since 1996. Douglas also went on to be the first African American woman to win the individual gold on the individual uneven bars and individual beam events as well. Gabby took a break after the London Olympics for about nine months and then decided to start training under new coach Kittia Carpenter. Douglas ended up placing fourth all-around at the 2015 City of Jesolo Trophy, second in the all-around at the US Classic and fifth overall in the P&G Championships. Finally in July 2016 Gabby won a gold medal with the USA team at the second Olympic games.
Titles and Awards
Gabby Douglas has won many awards during her time as a competitive gymnast. Douglas won her first award at the age of 8, which was the Virginia State Championship and she hasn’t slowed down since. When Douglas made her debut nationally at the SuperGirl Cup, she placed fourth all around, third on the balance beam, sixth on the vault, and ninth all-around in the junior division. During the 2010 U.S. Junior National Championships, she was awarded the silver medal on the balance beam and fourth all-around. When Douglas conquered the uneven bars she earned the title of fifth place which helped push the U.S. over the edge to win the gold medal. Douglas also won the gold medal in the team finals at the 2011 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Japan. During Douglas’ time at the 2012 Summer Olympics, she won an individual and team gold medal She also won team gold at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Personal Life
Gabby Douglas, or Gabrielle Christina Victoria Douglas, was born on December 31st, 1995 in Newport News, Virginia and grew up in Virginia Beach. Gabby’s parents are Timothy Douglas and Natalie Hawkins-Douglas who are also parents to three other children. Gabby has three older siblings, Arielle Douglas, Joyelle Douglas, and Jonathan Douglas. Douglas’ older siblings were also passionate about gymnastics in their younger years and convinced the young Gabby to try out gymnastics to see if she would like it or not. When she was 14, Gabby moved to Des Moines, Iowa to focus on gymnastics and increase her ability and skills with renowned coach, Liang Chow. Douglas left her family during this move which she has stated was very challenging and the hardest thing she has ever done. The Douglas family is very tight knit and extremely supportive of Gabby and all her endeavours in the gymnastics world.
Fun Facts
- Douglas was only four years old when she did her first tumbling pass
- Douglas trained for over 18,000 hours for her first time at the Olympics
- Gabby helped set the record for the most amount of cartwheels performed at the same time
- Douglas has her own line of leotards
- Douglas became the first African American gymnast to win an individual Gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics
- She produced her own Lifetime movie about her life
- She won her first state gymnastics championship at the age of eight
- She moved away from her family at the age of 14 to practice more gymnastics
- Douglas loves her family and does not believe she would have made it to the Olympics without their continuous support
- Gabby Douglas’ favorite color is yellow
- Douglas’ favorite meal is salmon with mashed potatoes
FAQ
Will Gabby Douglas be participating in the 2020 Olympics?
Gabby Douglas has played a key role in the United States Gymnastics team for the past eight years, winning her first gold medal back in 2012. Unfortunately Douglas will not be participating in the 2020 Summer Olympic games. Douglas, now 24, is focusing on enjoying her life and hasn’t trained since 2016. Douglas is looking to explore other careers in order to find success outside of the gymnastics sport. Whatever Gabby does will most certainly be amazing!
What is The Gabby Douglas Story about?
The Gabby Douglas Story is a Lifetime movie produced by Gabby Douglas which depicts her life and the events she endured on her journey to the Olympics. Douglas is known for being an incredible and extraordinary gymnast and decided to produce her own film which would detail the events in her life that led her to becoming the woman she is today. Gabby is portrayed by Imani Hakim and coach Liang is portrayed by Brian Tee.
What is Gabby Douglas’ diet?
As a United States Olympic Gymnast, Douglas’ diet has to be extremely strict and well followed in order for Gabby to perform her absolute best and be in the best shape of her life. For lunch Douglas likes to focus on eating lean proteins like chicken and grilled asparagus, Douglas also loves nuts, particularly almonds and finds them to be just enough to get her through the training day. Her breakfast and dinner must also consist of more lean protein and veggies in order to stay physically fit.
Does Gabby Douglas have a cheat meal?
Gabby Douglas, like most people, likes to pride herself on normality and that she is not just this amazing and incredible gymnast but a normal person as well. Douglas loves greasy foods and tries to treat herself to one day where she likes to have a few sweets and greasy foods, without going completely haywire. Douglas believes the key to a cheat day is balance and that not every meal requires you feeling like you can not move afterwards.