Hezly Rivera’s first official journey to Paris is underway!
The teenager Workforce USA gymnastics phenom, who claimed the fifth spot on the U.S. Olympic Trials, solely tells ipromiseyoumedia that she achieved the historic feat partially by specializing in herself — and never fascinated with the sudden occasions that modified the scope of final month’s meet.
“My mindset was type of like I had nothing to lose, so I advised myself, ‘Simply go on the market and do what you have been doing within the fitness center,’ ” Rivera, 16, says, referring to the accidents of main contenders for the crew, together with Shilese Jones, Skye Blakely and Kayla DiCello.
She added, “I additionally consider my occasions as type of occasion finals the place, if I am on beam, that is the one occasion I am on, that is what I am doing. I am not fascinated with the rest. If I am on vault, I am solely fascinated with vault, and I type of simply transfer via the occasions like that and it turns into manner simpler, and my thoughts simply turns into extra settled and extra calm.”
All of that are phrases extra prone to come from a veteran within the sport, not somebody who turned 16 six weeks in the past.
She continues, “I am type of simply very targeted on myself and I do not like to go searching at what different persons are doing. I identical to to remain locked in and targeted on myself. So clearly I do not wish to see anyone get harm. It was so heartbreaking as a result of everyone has labored so laborious to get right here.”
Rivera’s unlikely highway to Paris — for the file, she had beforehand solely been to its airport, to not town itself — has up to now been one crammed with pleasure and perhaps just a little chaos.
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“It has been loopy,” she tells ipromiseyoumedia. “Simply making the crew is simply such a tremendous expertise and I am so blissful to be right here. And clearly I made the Olympics, so I’ve to nonetheless work very laborious to attain my desires on the Olympics, which I am very excited for.”
The New Jersey native started the game at age 5 as an outlet, she says, as a result of her “flipping round the home” doing cartwheels and roundoffs scared her mother, Heidy.
The coaching caught, and Rivera finally moved to North Texas to work with legendary coach Valeri Liukin (father to 2008 Olympic gold medalist Nastia Liukin) at WOGA Gymnastics.
Adapting to a brand new residence base took some getting used to, the rising Eleventh-grader says. However in competitors, Rivera is understood for her consistency, one thing which she theorizes helped land her a spot alongside Simone Biles, Jordan Chiles, Suni Lee and Jade Carey.
“My strengths that I deliver to Workforce USA are my bars and my beam as a result of I feel my kind units me aside,” she tells ipromiseyoumedia. “I feel I am a really clear gymnast. I’ve some problem — clearly not the best problem — however I am working my manner up there and I feel that my execution actually units me aside.”
When the Olympic girls’s gymnastics competitors begins on July 28, the 5 girls, and alternates Joscelyn Roberson and Leanne Wong, can be united, nevertheless, sporting the identical leotards to characterize USA.
“It is insane,” Rivera says. “It’s such an honor as a result of I’ve at all times stated, ‘I wish to put on that leo and compete on the Olympics.’ So now that it is truly right here and it is actual and I’ve achieved my desires, that is so unimaginable. I am so blissful, and actually, unboxing the leos introduced me a lot pleasure as a result of I made it and I am right here to characterize my crew, USA, so it is such an unimaginable expertise and such an honor.”
She pauses after which provides: “They’re so sparkly. I like all of the gems on it.”
Spoken like a real 16-year-old.
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