Kerri Strug’s name is etched in U.S. Olympic lore. Here’s why.
The 1996 United States Women’s Gymnastics team was full of stars, Shannon Miller, Dominique Moceanu, and Dominique Dawes, to name a few. Kerri Strug was also on the team. A two-time Olympian, Strug was the youngest Olympian to participate in the 1992 Barcelona games. She was 14 at the time.
Granted, Strug never reached Simone Biles’s status in the sport, but her amazing work ethic separated her other competitors. She helped the U.S. win the Bronze in the 1992 Olympics and three medals, all in the team event, at the World Championships, where she nabbed silver medals in 1991 and 1994 and a bronze prize in 1995.
Then came her second Olympic opportunity, the 1996 games in Atlanta. Team USA held a narrow lead over Russia and Romania, and it was now time for the final rotation, with Strug scheduled for the horse. Strug’s best event was the vault; she was a specialist, but she landed poorly on her left ankle during her first attempt, and the team physicians didn’t know if she could do the final vault.
She convinced them she could do it; a gold medal was at stake.
Strug took the final vault, landed, and hopped slightly on her good leg in an otherwise clean landing. Strug scored a 9.712, which was good enough to clinch the gold for Team USA.
It was a glorious achievement for Strug and her country–best in the world.
