Gabby Douglas (gymnastics)

The artistic gymnast Gabby Douglas started training in the sport when she was six years old. That was when her sister convinced their mother to enroll them in a gymnastics class. Gabby became part of history as the first African-American who became the individual all-around champion in the Olympics. She also received credit as the first U.S. gymnast to hold a gold medal in both team and individual competitions in the Olympics.

To be specific, Gabby is the 2012 Olympic all-around champion and the 2015 World all-around silver medalist.

Her accomplishments instantly made her a public figure who many young athletes aspire to be. Her life story became a successful movie in 2014 which was entitled The Gabby Douglas Story. This was quickly followed by a reality television series Douglas Family Gold. She also wrote the book entitled Grace, Gold, and Glory: My Leap of Faith. The book expressed her love for her craft and what it takes to be an Olympic gold medalist.