Gabby Douglas facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Gabby Douglas
Douglas at the 2016 Olympic Games
Personal information
Full name	Gabrielle Christina Victoria Douglas
Born	(1995-12-31) December 31, 1995 (age 29) Newport News, Virginia, U.S.
Height	5 ft 2.5 in (159 cm)
Discipline	Women's artistic gymnastics
Years on national team	2008–2012, 2014–2016
Gym	WOGA Buckeye Gymnastics Chow's Gymnastics
Former coach(es)	Liang Chow Kittia Carpenter Christian Gallardo Valeri Liukin
Music	Floor music 2007–08: "Hora Presta" by Gilles Apap & the Transylvanian Mountain Boys 2011–12: "Memories" by David Guetta feat. Kid Cudi & "We No Speak Americano" by Yolanda Be Cool and DCUP 2012: "Bon Bon" by Pitbull, DJ Alvaro mix of "We No Speak Americano" by Yolanda Be Cool and DCUP. 2015–16: "Dare (La La La)" by Shakira
Medal record Women's artistic gymnastics Representing  United States Olympic Games Gold 2012 London Team Gold 2012 London All-around Gold 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team World Championships Gold 2011 Tokyo Team Gold 2015 Glasgow Team Silver 2015 Glasgow All-around Pacific Rim Championships Gold 2012 Seattle Team Gold 2012 Seattle Uneven bars Pan American Championships Gold 2010 Guadalajara Team Gold 2010 Guadalajara Uneven bars FIG World Cup Event 1st 2nd 3rd All-Around World Cup 1 0 0

Gabrielle Christina Victoria Douglas (born December 31, 1995), known as Gabby Douglas, is a famous American gymnast. She won the gold medal in the all-around competition at the 2012 London Olympics. She also earned a silver medal in the all-around at the 2015 World Championships.

Gabby was part of the gold-winning U.S. teams at both the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics. These teams were famously called the "Fierce Five" and the "Final Five". She also helped the U.S. win team gold at the 2011 and 2015 World Championships. In 2012, she became the U.S. champion on the uneven bars, and in 2016, she won the American Cup all-around title.

Gabby Douglas made history as the first African American woman to win an Olympic individual all-around title. She was also the first U.S. gymnast to win gold in both the individual all-around and team events at the same Olympic Games. With six Olympic and World Championship medals, she is one of the most successful U.S. female gymnasts ever.

Her amazing gymnastics journey has been featured in a 2014 TV movie called The Gabby Douglas Story. She also had her own reality television show, Douglas Family Gold. Gabby has written two books: Grace, Gold, and Glory: My Leap of Faith and Raising the Bar. In 2021, she won the first season of The Masked Dancer.

Gabby Douglas's Early Life

Gabby Douglas was born on December 31, 1995, in Newport News, Virginia. She grew up in Virginia Beach with her parents, Timothy Douglas and Natalie Hawkins-Douglas. She has two older sisters, Arielle and Joyelle, and an older brother, Johnathan.

Gabby started gymnastics when she was six years old. Her sister Arielle convinced their mom to sign her up for classes. Her first gym was Excalibur Gymnastics in Virginia Beach. When she was eight, Gabby won the Level 4 all-around gymnastics title at the 2004 Virginia State Championships.

At age 14, Gabby moved to Des Moines, Iowa, to train full-time with coach Liang Chow. Her family stayed in Virginia, so Gabby lived with Travis and Missy Parton and their four daughters. One of the Parton daughters also trained at Chow's gym. Gabby found it hard to be away from her family and hometown at first.

Gabby was raised Christian. She has said that her faith is very important to her. She also mentioned in her biography that her family practiced some Jewish traditions when she was younger. This included going to a synagogue, eating kosher food, and celebrating Hanukkah.

Junior Gymnastics Career

2008–2009: Starting Elite Gymnastics

Gabby became eligible for elite gymnastics in 2008. This is the highest level of competition in the U.S. She first competed at the U.S. Classic in Houston, Texas, where she placed tenth in the all-around. She then competed at the 2008 U.S. Championships in Boston, Massachusetts, finishing 16th all-around. She was not chosen for the junior U.S. national team that year.

In 2009, Gabby had a wrist injury. Because of this, she could not compete at the 2009 U.S. Classic. She did compete at the 2009 U.S. Championships in Dallas, Texas. However, she hurt her knee during a skill on the floor exercise. She only competed on the balance beam on the second day and finished fifth on that event. She was not selected for the junior national team again.

2010: Joining the National Team

Gabby competed at the 2010 Nastia Liukin Cup, a televised competition, where she placed fourth all-around. Her first elite meet of the year was the U.S. Classic in Chicago. She finished ninth in the all-around but won a bronze medal on the balance beam.

At the U.S. Championships, she finished fourth in the all-around. She won the silver medal on the balance beam and was finally added to the junior national team. She then made her international debut at the 2010 Pan American Championships. Gabby and her teammates won the team gold medal. The next day, she won a gold medal in the uneven bars final.

In October 2010, at age 14, Gabby moved to West Des Moines, Iowa. She went to train with Liang Chow, who had coached Olympic gold medalist Shawn Johnson. Gabby had been impressed when Chow taught her how to do the Amanar vault in just one afternoon. Chow agreed to train her, making sure her old coaches knew he didn't try to recruit her.

Senior Gymnastics Career

2011: Senior Debut and World Gold

Gabby became old enough to compete at the senior level in 2011. She made her senior debut at the City of Jesolo Trophy in Italy. She helped the American team win the gold medal. She also won bronze medals on the balance beam and floor exercise.

At the U.S. Classic, she only competed on the uneven bars and won a silver medal. At the 2011 U.S. Championships, Gabby had some falls and finished seventh in the all-around. She tied for a bronze medal on the uneven bars.

Gabby was chosen to compete at the 2011 World Championships in Tokyo. She competed on the uneven bars in the team final, helping the U.S. team win the gold medal. She also made it to the uneven bars final and finished fifth.

2012: Olympic Gold and "Fierce Five"

Douglas at the 2012 U.S. Classic

Gabby competed as a guest at the American Cup. She had the highest all-around score, but as a guest, she couldn't win the gold medal. Later that month, she was part of the gold-winning U.S. team at the Pacific Rim Championships. She won the gold medal on the uneven bars.

Gabby won the uneven bars title at the U.S. Classic. She also won a bronze medal on the floor exercise. At the 2012 U.S. Championships, she finished second in the all-around. She won the national uneven bars title and a bronze medal on floor.

Gabby won the all-around title at the Olympic Trials. This guaranteed her a spot on the Olympic team. She was named to the team along with Jordyn Wieber, McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman, and Kyla Ross.

2012 Summer Olympics: Double Gold

Douglas (right) during the all-around final at the 2012 Summer Olympics

At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Gabby and her teammates, known as the "Fierce Five", made it to the team final in first place. Gabby also qualified for the all-around, uneven bars, and balance beam finals. The team won the gold medal in the team event. This was the first time an American team had won since the "Magnificent Seven" in 1996.

Gabby then won the gold medal in the all-around final. She became the first African American woman to win this event. She was also the first American gymnast to win both the team and individual all-around gold at the same Olympics.

In the individual event finals, Gabby finished eighth on the uneven bars and seventh on the balance beam.

Douglas at Citi Field in 2012

2013–2014: Taking a Break and Returning to Training

In 2013, Gabby moved to Los Angeles to be with her family. She was no longer training with Liang Chow but still planned to compete in the 2016 Summer Olympics. In April 2014, Gabby returned to Iowa to train with Chow again. However, in July, it was announced that she had left Chow once more. In August, Gabby began training with Kittia Carpenter at Buckeye Gymnastics in Columbus, Ohio. She did not compete in 2014 but attended national team training camps. Gabby was added back to the U.S. national team in November 2014.

2015: World Championships Success

In March 2015, Gabby returned to international competition at the City of Jesolo Trophy. She helped the American team win gold and placed fourth in the all-around. In July, she competed at the U.S. Classic and won the silver medal in the all-around behind Simone Biles. She also won silver medals on uneven bars and floor, and a bronze on balance beam. At the U.S. Championships, she finished fifth all-around and was named to the national team.

In October 2015, Gabby was chosen for the 2015 World Championships in Glasgow. She helped the U.S. team win their World title again. Gabby then won the silver medal in the all-around, becoming the first Olympic all-around champion to return and win a World Championships medal since 1981. She also finished fifth in the uneven bars final.

2016: Rio Olympics and "Final Five"

Douglas at the 2016 Summer Olympics

Gabby started 2016 by winning the all-around title at the American Cup. This was her first international all-around win since the 2012 Olympics. She then won another all-around title at the City of Jesolo Trophy. In event finals, she won silver on uneven bars and bronze on floor.

Gabby competed only on uneven bars and balance beam at the U.S. Classic. At the U.S. Championships, she finished fourth in the all-around. She was selected for the U.S. national team and qualified for the Olympic Trials.

At the U.S. Olympic Trials, Gabby had some mistakes and finished seventh in the all-around. However, the U.S. national team coordinator, Márta Károlyi, chose her for the five-person Olympic team because of her strength on uneven bars and her experience. Gabby and Aly Raisman became the first American female gymnasts to compete in multiple Olympic Games since 2000.

2016 Summer Olympics: Team Gold

Douglas celebrating with the other Final Five members at the 2016 Olympic Games

On August 7, 2016, Gabby competed in the qualification round at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. She helped the American team qualify for the final in first place. She also qualified for the uneven bars final in third place. She finished third in the all-around qualification, but because only two gymnasts per country can compete in the all-around final, she could not advance.

Gabby competed on the uneven bars in the team final. She helped the United States win a second consecutive gold medal, which was her third Olympic gold medal overall. After winning, Gabby and her teammates called themselves the "Final Five" to honor Márta Károlyi's retirement and because the team size would be smaller in 2020. Gabby finished seventh in the uneven bars event final due to a mistake.

2022–Present: Comeback Journey

In October 2022, news began to spread that Gabby Douglas had returned to training at the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy (WOGA). In November 2022, a photo of Gabby training with other WOGA athletes appeared online. In February 2023, WOGA coach Valeri Liukin confirmed to NBC that Gabby was training at his gym. In July 2023, Gabby herself confirmed on Instagram that she was training to try for the 2024 Olympics.

Douglas competing on uneven bars at the 2024 Core Hydration Classic

Gabby was supposed to compete in February 2024 at the Winter Cup, but she had to withdraw after testing positive for COVID-19. After this, it was briefly reported that she was no longer at WOGA, but she returned after two weeks.

Gabby's first competition since the 2016 Olympics was the 2024 American Classic in Katy, Texas. She finished second on vault. She made some mistakes on uneven bars and floor, and her all-around score was not enough to qualify for the all-around at the U.S. Championships. However, she did qualify for the U.S. Championships on vault, uneven bars, and balance beam.

Gabby then competed at the U.S. Classic in Hartford, Connecticut. On her first event, uneven bars, she fell twice and then withdrew from the rest of the competition. In May 2024, Gabby got injured during training. She withdrew from the U.S. Championships and could not try for the 2024 Olympic team. However, she has said she still hopes to compete for a spot on the 2028 Olympic team.

Awards and Honors

Douglas and the other Fierce Five members meeting President Barack Obama after the 2012 Summer Olympics

In December 2012, the Associated Press named Gabby Douglas the Female Athlete of the Year. She was only the fourth gymnast to receive this award.

Gabby was nominated for a Laureus World Sports Award. In June 2013, she received two BET Awards for her achievements at the 2012 Summer Olympics. In 2017, she was nominated for an ESPY Award for Best Team with the other members of the 2016 Olympic women's gymnastics team. In 2025, she was chosen for the United States Olympic & Paralympic Hall of Fame.

Gabby Douglas in the Media

In July 2012, Gabby Douglas and her teammates made history. They were the first entire Olympic gymnastics team to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated's Olympic Preview issue. Gabby also appeared on one of five special Time magazine Olympic covers.

On August 3, 2012, the Kellogg Company announced that Gabby would be featured on special-edition boxes of Corn Flakes. This was a change from the usual tradition of Olympic athletes appearing on Wheaties boxes. Later that month, on August 23, Gabby threw out the first pitch at Citi Field for a baseball game.

Douglas alongside Michelle Obama on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in 2012

On August 26, 2012, Gabby Douglas spoke about facing challenges at Excalibur Gymnastics in an interview with Oprah Winfrey. She described an incident where she heard other girls say unkind things to her. The CEO of Excalibur Gymnastics denied these claims.

In September 2012, Nintendo announced that Gabby Douglas would be part of a new ad campaign for New Super Mario Bros. 2. Gabby also led the Pledge of Allegiance at the 2012 Democratic National Convention.

In December 2012, Gabby released her autobiography, Grace, Gold, and Glory: My Leap of Faith. The book became a bestseller for young adults. She also performed a small floor routine at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards during a live performance by Alicia Keys and Nicki Minaj.

Gabby had a small acting role on the Disney XD series Kickin It in an episode called "Gabby's Gold," which aired on August 12, 2013. In 2013, she donated gymnastics equipment used at the 2012 Summer Olympics to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

The Gabby Douglas Story aired on Lifetime on February 1, 2014. The movie starred Imani Hakim, and Gabby performed all the gymnastics stunts herself. In 2015, it was announced that a reality television show about Gabby and her family, called Douglas Family Gold, would air on the Oxygen channel. The show premiered on May 25, 2016.

On August 23, 2016, it was announced that Gabby Douglas would be one of the judges at the 2017 Miss America pageant. In 2016, Mattel released a "Gymnast Barbie" doll modeled after Gabby Douglas.

In 2017, after an interview with Olympic gold medalist Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas sent a tweet that caused some discussion. She later apologized for the tweet.

Gabby appeared disguised as a gray-haired aspiring gym owner in a "Celebrity Edition" episode of Undercover Boss that aired on May 11, 2018. In 2020, Gabby competed on The Masked Singer spin-off The Masked Dancer as "Cotton Candy" and won the season. In 2022, she appeared as herself with Dominique Dawes and Laurie Hernandez in an episode of the Disney+ animated series The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, where they judged a gymnastics competition.

Competitive History

Competitive history of Gabby Douglas at the junior level

Year	Event	Team	AA	VT	UB	BB	FX
2008
	U.S. Classic		10	16	8	13	13
	U.S. Championships		16	21	20	12	17
2009
	U.S. Championships					5
2010
	Nastia Liukin Cup		4
	U.S. Classic		9	6	20		20
	U.S. Championships		4	4	11		8
	Pan American Championships		5

Competitive history of Gabby Douglas at the senior level

Year	Event	Team	AA	VT	UB	BB	FX
2011
	City of Jesolo Trophy		4
	U.S. Classic
	U.S. Championships		7			19	11
	World Championships				5
2012
	Pacific Rim Championships
	U.S. Classic					7
	U.S. Championships					7
	U.S. Olympic Trials					6
	Olympic Games				8	7
2015
	City of Jesolo Trophy		4
	U.S. Classic
	U.S. Championships		5		4	9	6
	World Championships				5
2016
	American Cup
	City of Jesolo Trophy
	U.S. Classic					6
	U.S. Championships		4		6	6	5
	U.S. Olympic Trials		7	6		11	6
	Olympic Games				7
2022
	American Classic		10		20	5	19
	U.S. Classic				43

Books by Gabby Douglas

• Douglas, Gabrielle; Burford, Michelle (2012). Grace, Gold, and Glory: My Leap of Faith. Zondervan. 224 pp. ISBN 978-0310740681.
• Douglas, Gabrielle (2013). Raising The Bar. Zondervan. 144 pp. ISBN 978-0-310-74070-4.

See also

In Spanish: Gabrielle Douglas para niños

• List of Olympic female gymnasts for the United States