Paul Hamm facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Paul Hamm
Hamm in 2010
Personal information
Full name	Paul Elbert Hamm
Country represented	United States
Born	(1982-09-24) September 24, 1982 (age 42) Washburn, Wisconsin, U.S.
Hometown	Waukesha, Wisconsin, U.S.
Height	165 cm (5 ft 5 in)
Weight	62 kg (137 lb)
Discipline	Men's artistic gymnastics
Years on national team	2000–2005, 2007–2009
Gym	Team Chevron Team Texaco Swiss Turners
Head coach(es)	Miles Avery Arnold Kvetenadze
Assistant coach(es)	Doug Stibel
Medal record Men's artistic gymnastics Representing  United States Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 1 2 0 World Championships 2 2 1 Pacific Rim Championships 12 2 4 Olympic Games Gold 2004 Athens All-around Silver 2004 Athens Team Silver 2004 Athens Horizontal bar World Championships Gold 2003 Anaheim All-around Gold 2003 Anaheim Floor Silver 2001 Ghent Team Silver 2003 Anaheim Team Bronze 2002 Debrecen Floor Pacific Rim Championships Gold 2002 Vancouver Team Gold 2002 Vancouver All-around Gold 2002 Vancouver Vault Gold 2002 Vancouver Horizontal bar Gold 2004 Honolulu Team Gold 2004 Honolulu All-around Gold 2004 Honolulu Vault Gold 2004 Honolulu Horizontal bar Gold 2008 San Jose Team Gold 2008 San Jose All-around Gold 2008 San Jose Pommel horse Gold 2008 San Jose Parallel bars Silver 2004 Honolulu Floor Silver 2008 San Jose Floor Bronze 2002 Vancouver Floor Bronze 2004 Honolulu Pommel horse Bronze 2004 Honolulu Parallel bars Bronze 2008 San Jose Horizontal bar

Paul Elbert Hamm (born September 24, 1982) is a retired American gymnast. He was a key member of the United States men's national artistic gymnastics team. Paul is famous for winning the all-around gold medal at the 2004 Olympic Games. He also won two other Olympic medals and was the 2003 World all-around champion.

Paul Hamm is known as the most successful American male gymnast ever. He is one of only two American gymnasts, along with Simone Biles, to win the all-around title at both the Olympics and the World Championships. He is the only male American gymnast to achieve this amazing feat.

Paul Hamm: A Gymnastics Star

Early Life and Family

Paul Hamm was born on September 24, 1982, in Washburn, Wisconsin. His parents are Sandy and Cecily Hamm. Paul has a twin brother named Morgan Hamm, who is also a talented gymnast and an Olympic medalist. His older sister, Elizabeth (Betsy), was also a member of the USA Gymnastics Senior National Team. Paul grew up in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and went to Waukesha South High School.

Amazing Gymnastics Career

Paul Hamm was a three-time U.S. National all-around champion, winning titles from 2002 to 2004. In 2003, he made history by becoming the first American man to win the all-around title at a World Championships. At the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Paul competed with his twin brother Morgan. The team finished 5th, and Paul placed 14th in the individual all-around.

Olympic Dreams and Victories

Paul Hamm competed again at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, once more with his brother Morgan. He helped the team win a silver medal. Paul then went on to win the gold medal in the individual all-around competition, which was a huge achievement! He also nearly won gold on the horizontal bar but earned a silver medal after a very close tie.

In the all-around competition, Paul had a challenging moment when he fell on the vault. He nearly crashed into the judges' table! However, other gymnasts also made mistakes. Paul's strong performances on the parallel bars helped him climb back to fourth place. His final routine on the horizontal bar was incredible, earning him a score of 9.837. This amazing finish won him the gold medal by the smallest margin in Olympic gymnastics history: just 0.012 points!

Here were his scores on the six different gymnastics events:

• Floor: 9.725 (1st place)
• Pommel Horse: 9.700 (4th place)
• Rings: 9.587 (8th place)
• Vault: 9.137 (12th place)
• Parallel Bars: 9.837 (1st place)
• Horizontal bar: 9.837 (1st place)
• Overall Score: 57.823 (1st place)

The Sullivan Award

In 2004, Paul Hamm received the James E. Sullivan Award. This award is given to the best amateur athlete in the United States. Paul was only the second gymnast to ever receive this special honor, following Kurt Thomas.

Trying for More Olympics

After the 2004 Olympics, Paul and Morgan Hamm took a break to focus on their studies at Ohio State University. In 2007, they announced they would return to gymnastics. Paul won the American Cup in New York City in March 2008, showing he was still a top competitor.

However, during the 2008 U.S. Championships, Paul had to stop competing after injuring his hand. He fractured a bone in his right hand during his parallel bars routine. After surgery, he worked hard to recover. Even though he couldn't compete in the Olympic Trials, he was still named to the 2008 Olympic Team because of his past achievements and potential. He proved he was ready by performing in all six events at a special team meet.

Unfortunately, on July 28, Paul had to withdraw from the 2008 Olympic team due to injuries. He was replaced by Raj Bhavsar. Paul later decided to retire from the sport.

Paul Hamm also attempted a comeback for the 2012 Olympic team. However, he decided to retire from gymnastics for good. He explained that years of intense training had taken a toll on his body, and it was no longer possible to train at an Olympic level.

On December 15, 2015, it was announced that Paul Hamm would be inducted into the 2016 class of the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame, recognizing his incredible career.

Life Outside Gymnastics

Paul Hamm also appeared on the popular Japanese television show, Sasuke, which is known as Ninja Warrior in America and the UK. He and his brother Morgan competed in three tournaments. Paul made it to the second stage in one competition but ran out of time. In another, he couldn't get past the "Warped Wall" in the first stage. In his third attempt, he reached the second stage again but failed on an obstacle called the "Metal Spin."

Paul's Competition Results

2008 season

2007 season

2004 season

2003 season

2002 season

2001 season

2000 season

See also

In Spanish: Paul Hamm para niños