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Along with Gabby Douglas, Aly Raisman is the first American female gymnast to make a second Olympic team in 16 years.
It wasn’t an easy journey back, but it was worth it.
It would have been easy for Aly Raisman to walk away after the 2012 Olympics.
At the age of 18, she was the most decorated U.S. gymnast in London, taking home three medals–two gold and one bronze.
In the years since, there have been endorsements, talk show appearances, ESPN Body Issue photo shoots, red carpets, and even a turn on “Dancing with the Stars”.
But through it all, there’s always been that feeling she wasn’t quite done yet.
“I think it’s really important to go with your gut,” Raisman said. “I took a full year off after the 2012 Olympics and something was just kind of telling me that I should come back to gymnastics.”
Rio was calling.
It wasn’t easy to get back on that beam, though. Her coach, Mihai Brestyan, stipulated she had to undergo months of conditioning before doing any gymnastics.
“I think it was actually the first 6 months I was just so sore every single day,” Raisman said. “It’s crazy even just doing a back tuck now it’s simple for me, but when you actually come back you don’t actually realize all the muscles you use for it. So I was very sore for a long time.”
Still, she kept at it, wanting a second shot at Olympic glory.
She trained six days a week, sometimes twice a day.
“You know, there’s definitely days where you’re exhausted,” she said. “I think every single day, it’s like, I feel like once a month is like, I feel like super great, super energized. The rest of the days you’re exhausted because you’re constantly working out.”
At times, Aly was so tired, she would ask her parents to come get her from practice because she was too exhausted to drive home.
But the dream of another Olympic medal pushed her forward, as well as taking a look at her medals from London, which are tucked away in the safe.
“Sometimes if I’m busy training at the gym, I’ll text my dad to tell him to pick them up,” Raisman said. “If I’m having a rough day sometimes they’ll pick them up.”
Aly not only made the 2016 U.S. Olympic team, she’s returning as team captain, a role she flourished in, in London.
Her four teammates call the 22-year-old “Grandma Aly” because of her age and her maturity.
Aly is taking it all in stride.
“This time I’m trying to tell myself that I have a little less pressure because I’ve already accomplished winning so now I want to just relax and do it for my teammates, do it for my coaches, do it for my family and of course for myself, but just like relax and enjoy the experience,” she said.
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