When American gymnast nastia liukin clinched gold in the women’s all-around at the 2008 Olympic Games, it was a moment that transcended the sport. The daughter of champion Soviet gymnasts Valeri Liukin and Anna Kotchneva, the 18-year-old quickly became a global star, dazzling crowds with her elegant balletic grace.
Although Liukin was too young to compete in the 2004 Athens Olympics, she came a close second at the Olympic trials behind teammate Shawn Johnson East, and her performance earned her a spot on the Olympic squad. Then, at the Beijing Games, she stunned the world with a stunning performance. Her five medals—gold in the all-around, silver in the balance beam and uneven bars, and bronze in both the floor exercise and the team event—tied the record for most medals won by a U.S. gymnast at a single Olympic Games, previously set by Mary Lou Retton and Shannon Miller.
After winning a pair of golds at the 2007 World Championships in Melbourne, Liukin was named America’s top female gymnast by USA Gymnastics. She has now won a total of 14 World and Olympic medals, including four golds and nine senior national titles.
Liukin was born in Moscow and immigrated to the United States with her parents as a 2-year-old toddler, settling in Dallas. They established an elite gymnastics facility, the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy (WOGA), where Nastia began to train hard with fierce determination.
Her talent was apparent early, and she claimed back-to-back junior and senior National Championships. At the age of 13, she shifted gears to become a world-class senior gymnast, competing in all of the events at the 2005 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Helsinki and earning two gold medals on the uneven bars and balance beam.
Despite her remarkable success, Liukin struggled with depression and self-image issues. Her lowest point was the eve of the 2008 Olympic trials, when she fell on her best event, the uneven bars. But she fought through her tears, finished the routine and was met with an ovation by a supportive crowd. It helped her realize that her worth wasn’t defined solely by her accomplishments in the gym.
Although she retired from competition, Liukin has stayed involved in the gymnastics world as an NBC commentator. She was on the NBC broadcasting team for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and will be covering the Tokyo Games in 2020.
She has also made it a point to support up-and-coming gymnasts by founding the Nastia Liukin Cup gymnastics competition. And, though she has largely steered clear of rivalry-inducing social media, she and former rival Johnson have reunited, with Liukin even becoming godmother to Johnson’s first child. The pair have been a pleasure to watch as they relive their gymnastics glory days together and share stories about the highs and lows of being world-class athletes. Their friendship has even spawned an online show called The Olympians.
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