It has been precisely ten years since Group USA gained the gold medal on the 2012 Olympics. The 2012 group that includes Gabby Douglas, McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman, Kyla Ross, and Jordyn Wieber was collectively often known as the “Fierce 5.”
It’s surprising to consider how rapidly time flies and most TMC readers most likely really feel like this second occurred solely yesterday. However the perfect issues about gymnastics, it at all times produces essentially the most inspiring athletes. Athletes who impress you with the athletic feats they show on the Olympics, athletes who impress you exterior of competitors within the effort they provide to be position fashions for the younger followers. However most gymnasts will proceed to impress lengthy after they retire, after they transition out of the game and discover new profession paths to excel in.
The 2012 group was all of that. And within the ten years since, time has confirmed how precious they have been to the game, and the way succesful they’re in relation to excelling exterior of sports activities. We noticed their expertise as athletes, now we’re seeing their different skills as they discovered success in thrilling new profession paths.
Most significantly, these have been 5 gymnasts you may be proud to cheer for. They may at all times be depended upon to make the correct selections, deal with others with respect, and the game is healthier due to their contributions to it. They have been additionally one of the vital nicely rounded groups the game has ever skilled.
Most groups are a mixture between extremely embellished gymnasts and gymnasts who go their entire profession with out ever successful a medal in a person occasion on the World Championships or Olympic stage (Group-1). The 2012 Fierce 5 was completely different. Each single member gained a number of medals within the particular person occasions. Each member of the group both gained gold in a person occasion, or has a number of medals within the extremely prestigious All-Round. The least embellished member of this group has 4 profession medals, three of that are gold.
The 2012 Fierce 5 wasn’t a lot a legendary group, however a set of gymnasts who every introduced their very own legend to the desk.
Aly Raisman: The oldest member of the group, Aly would go on to turn into a 2x Olympian and a 6x Olympic medalist. Since 1984 she is one in every of solely three gymnasts to win a number of Olympic medals on flooring. Raisman would even be an impressive All-Arounder having gained a silver medal in 2016, and solely narrowly lacking out on one other in 2012 resulting from tiebreaking guidelines.
Jordyn Wieber: In 2011 Jordyn grew to become an All-Round Champion, the equal of being thought-about the highest ranked athlete in any explicit yr. Jordyn completed because the #4 ranked gymnast of the 2012 Olympics, however as a result of two of her teammates completed forward of her, Jordyn was unable to advance resulting from nation limits.
McKayla Maroney: On the top of her profession followers have been treating Maroney as the best vaulter the game had ever seen. Whereas Simone Biles would later take that title, it ought to be remembered that in the one occasion Simone and McKayla ever competed immediately towards one another in a Group-1 competitors, McKayla gained. Maroney is the one member of the 2012 group who didn’t win an All-Round medal in her profession. However she was a powerful All-Arounder in her junior days who was solely compelled into the position of a specialist due to accidents and Group USA’s depth chart.
Gabby Douglas: She grew to become the 2012 Olympic All-Round Champion and one of many greatest family names gymnastics has ever had. In 2015 she grew to become the primary gymnast since Elena Davydova in 1981 to win a second All-Round medal in Group-1 competitors whereas being the reigning Olympic Champion. Gabby’s look on the 2016 Olympics marked a historic comeback that was so uncommon for Olympic All-Round Champions, the final Olympic All-Round Champion to do it was Nadia Comaneci in 1980. Gabby’s third place end in All-Round qualifying on the 2016 Olympics was one of the vital historic accomplishments in trendy gymnastics historical past. However nation limits prevented her from competing in All-Round Finals the place she may have contended for a medal.
Kyla Ross: The youngest member of the group and hadn’t but reached her full kind on the 2012 Olympics, Ross would return to the game with a vengeance in later years. On the 2013 World Championships she gained silver medals on 3 of 5 occasions. If not for Simone Biles, Kyla would have turn into an All-Round Champion that yr. In 2014 she completed the extremely prestigious feat of being a 2x All-Round medalist. Ross was on observe to turn into one of the vital profitable gymnasts of the 2013-2016 Olympic cycle earlier than a progress spurt hindered her profession on the elite-level. As an alternative, Ross would transition to the NCAA stage the place she continued her run of success.
What makes the story of the Fierce 5 so particular is who they competed towards. The Individuals introduced dwelling the gold medal whereas competing towards one of many hardest Russian lineups ever assembled. Within the factors system, Russian gymnasts from the 2012 Olympics completed 2nd, third, and 4th within the all-decade rankings for 2010-2019. The Individuals wanted an All-Star American lineup to prevail and the Fierce 5 delivered.
It additionally occurred whereas the gymnasts in query needed to endure horrific circumstances and members of the Fierce 5 took energetic roles in curbing abuse tradition inside the sport. For a group that discovered so many various methods to win the love of followers, the Fierce 5’s position in pioneering a tradition change and dealing to finish abuse in gymnastics was yet one more addition to the listing of causes they’re so broadly revered.
The 2012 group of Wieber, Maroney, Raisman, Douglas, and Ross has a excessive standing within the gymnastics neighborhood. This group is broadly cherished as a result of they symbolize legendary athletic success, carried out themselves in ways in which made them personally likable, and labored to forestall future gymnasts from being harmed.
Ten years later, we proceed to see what else they’re able to, what different fields they’ll excel in, and the abilities which have that we didn’t learn about again in 2012.
Aly Raisman grew to become one of the vital highly effective anti-abuse advocates within the sport. Jordyn Wieber grew to become the top coach of an SEC program at an unprecedently younger age in trendy NCAA historical past. Kyla Ross had a profitable school profession at UCLA, graduated from one in every of most prestigious tutorial manufacturers within the nation, and is at the moment gaining expertise as an assistant coach immediately beneath Wieber and can possible turn into a head coach herself someday.
McKayla Maroney is making an attempt out her enterprise expertise by constructing a private wellness model and nonetheless stays profitable on her social media platforms. And eventually, Gabby Douglas who walked away with a lot fame from the 2012 Olympics, it wouldn’t make sense for her to observe any conventional profession path. As an alternative, she enjoys life on the ranch and elevating animals (cows and llamas) in between her appearances on movie star tv reveals.
