Gabby Douglas

Sport: Gymnastics

Nation: United States of America

DOB: December 31, 1995

Hometown: Virginia Beach, VA

Career Highlights: The “Flying Squirrel” appears poised for Olympic glory after upsetting reigning world champion Jordyn Wieber to win the all-around at the U.S. trials. Perhaps the result wasn’t so stunning, though, considering Douglas also bested Wieber in posting the highest score in March at the American Cup, where she was competing as an alternate. With a performance at the trials that highlighted her grace - along with the athleticism that allows her to generate great height and is the genesis of the colorful nickname given to her by U.S. women’s team coordinator Martha Karolyi - Douglas may have established herself as the gymnast to beat in London. She finished with a score of 123.45 and will lead the strongest U.S. women’s team since 1996, which will be heavily favored to win gold. “You want to peak at the right time,” Douglas said after the trials. Douglas was a part of the gold medal-winning team that beat Russia and China at the 2011 world championships, and she’s a six-time gold medalist in senior level competition. Her top events are the uneven bars and the vault, which allow her to take full advantage of her strength along with a landing ability that at times appears flawless. Douglas’ biggest challenge in winning the all-around title in London may be the balance beam, her weakest event and one in which she struggled at the U.S. trials - nearly allowing Wieber to surpass her. Douglas moved to West Des Moines, Iowa, when she was 14 to train with Liang Chow, the coach of 2008 Olympic balance beam champion Shawn Johnson.

Olympic History: None