Kerri Strug

Kerri Strug
Full name	Kerri Allyson Strug Fischer
Born	(1977-11-19)November 19, 1977 Tucson, Arizona,U.S.
Hometown	Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
Spouse	Robert Fischer ​ (m.2010)​
Height	141 cm (4 ft 8 in)
Years on national team	1990–97 (USA)
Medal record Women'sartistic gymnastics RepresentingtheUnited States Olympic Games 1996 Atlanta Team 1992 Barcelona Team World Championships 1991 Indianapolis Team 1994 Dortmund Team 1995 Sabae Team

Kerri Allyson Strug(born November 19, 1977) is a retired American gymnast fromTucson, Arizona.She was a member of theMagnificent Seven,the victorious all-around women's gymnastics team that represented the United States at the1996 Summer Olympics.Strug performed thevaultthat clinched the gold for the U.S. team despite having injured her ankle.

Gymnastics career

Pre-1996 Olympics

Strug began training in gymnastics at the age of three. She began competing in gymnastics at the age of eight. Her sister Lisa was already competing in gymnastics at the time that Strug was born. Strug was trained by American coach Jim Gault until January 1991, when she moved to Houston, Texas, to train with coachBéla Károlyi.At that time, she also joined the United States National Team. In 1992, as the youngest member of the entire U.S. team at age 14, she won a team bronze medal at theBarcelonaOlympics.Throughout the Team Compulsories and Optionals, she andKim Zmeskalcompeted for the final US available spot to compete in the all-around. She was eventually edged out by Zmeskal, withShannon MillerandBetty Okinoas the other two American gymnasts to qualify for the all-around.

After the 1992 Games, Strug chose to move toEdmond, Oklahoma,to train under the coaching ofSteve Nunnoat the Dynamo Gymnastics Club, where she trained with Shannon Miller. There, she struggled with a serious injury to her stomach.

At the 1993 Nationals, Strug placed 3rd in the all-around, 2nd on theuneven bars,and 3rd onfloor exercise.She completed theYurchenko ½vault.However, she had a weak second vault and did not medal in that event. After this competition, Strug left Edmond to return home toTucson, Arizona,where she trained withArthur Akopian,who flew in from California to train her, with the assistance of Jim Gault. Gault was Strug's coach when she started gymnastics at age 3.

While performing the compulsory uneven bars set in 1994, she pinged off the bar, subsequently releasing too early to be able to make the transition to low bar. She lost control and flew off the high bar backwards, landing in a twisted position on her side beneath the low bar. She was carried out of the gym on a stretcher and was taken to Desert Regional Hospital. The injury turned out to be a badly pulled back muscle, which required extensive rehabilitation. She recovered in time for the 1994 World Championships.

In 1995, Strug graduated fromGreen Fields Country Day SchoolinTucson, Arizona.Eventually, the coaching arrangement with Gault and Akopian became untenable as Gault was restricted in his coaching by NCAA recruiting rules. Strug once again left home, in July 1995, to train at Aerials Gymnastics in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with Tom and Lori Forster. Later that year, at the 1995 Nationals, Strug placed 5th in the all-around and came in 3rd on the uneven bars. At the 1995 World Championships, she was a member of the bronze medal-winning U.S. team, and she placed 7th in the all-around.

She trained with the Forsters from July 1995 until December 1995. She then moved back to Houston to train with Károlyi again in preparation for the 1996 Olympics. She beat the competition at the 1996American Cupin the all-around by almost a half point,a huge margin with the scoring system at that time. She also placed 1st on floor exercises and balance beam and 2nd on vault and uneven bars in the event finals. At the 1996 U.S. Nationals, Strug placed 5th in the all-around and came in 2nd on both vault and floor.

1996 Olympics

Strug participated in the1996 Olympicsas a member of the U.S. women's team, often referred to as theMagnificent Seven.After compulsories, Strug was ranked 9th overall and had placed high enough to qualify herself for the all-around. She posted the second-highest score on floor exercise—but qualified first in floor exercise event finals after the team final and ahead of eventual floor exercise gold medalistLilia Podkopayeva—and fourth-highest on vault, which would qualify her for event finals in her two strongest events. In the team competition, an event dominated by the Soviets for decades and never won by the United States, the U.S. competed with the Russian, Romanian, and Ukrainian teams. The Russians came into the team competition with a very narrow lead. The event came down to the final rotation on the final day of the team competition, July 23, 1996.

Going into the final rotation, with the Russians on floor exercise and the U.S. on vault, the U.S. women held a commanding 0.897-pointlead over the Russian team. However, it was still possible for the Russians to take the gold if the U.S. women collapsed. The first four U.S. gymnasts landed their vaults, but struggled to land them cleanly, taking steps and hops. Adding to the drama, Strug's teammateDominique Moceanufell twice, registering a poor score. Strug was the last to vault for the United States.

Strug under-rotated her first attempt, causing her to fall and injure her ankle. As a result, the attempt was awarded 9.162 points.Russian gymnastElena Dolgopolovafinished her floor routine about 10 seconds after Strug sat her first vault, with 1994 floor world championDina Kochetkovaand reigning Russian national floor championRoza Galievastill to perform their routines.Moceanu's score (9.200) may have been sufficient to beat the Russians if Strug did not perform a second vault. However, with the top two Russian floor workers left to perform, and Dolgopolova's score yet to be posted, the Russian team could have won gold if those last three scores averaged over 9.816. Strug, Moceanu,Dominique Dawes,Romanian gymnastsSimona AmânarandGina Gogean,and Chinese gymnastJi Liyahad all received floor scores of 9.825 or higher earlier that night.After leading the entire night, the U.S. was at risk of losing to Russia, and Strug needed a second vault score of 9.762 to mathematically clinch the gold.

In the time interval between Strug's two vaults, she asked, "Do we need this?"Károlyi replied, "Kerri, we need you to go one more time. We need you one more time for the gold. You can do it, you better do it."Strug thus limped slightly to the end of the runway to make her second attempt. She landed the vault briefly on both feet, almost instantly hopping onto only her uninjured foot, saluting the judges. She then collapsed onto her knees and needed assistance off the landing platform, to which sportscasterJohn Teshcommented, "Kerri Strug is hurt! She is hurt badly."The completed vault received a score of 9.712. As Strug landed the second vault, Dolgopalova's 9.750 floor score was posted, making Strug's 9.712 enough to guarantee the Americans the gold medal.

The rest of the Magnificent Seven refused to walk out to the medal ceremony without Strug,and eventually Béla Károlyi carried her onto the medals podium to join her team, after which she was treated at a hospital for a third-degree lateralsprainand tendon damage.Due to her injury, she was unable to compete in the individual all-around competition and event finals, despite having qualified for both. This allowed her teammates who had qualified for finals, but were eliminated due to rules limiting the number of gymnasts per country, to take Strug's place. Moceanu replaced Strug in the all-around, Dawes took her place in the floor final, andShannon Millertook her place in the vault final.

Strug became a national sports hero for her final vault, visitingPresidentBill Clinton,appearing at various television talk shows, making the cover ofSports Illustratedand appearing on aWheatiescereal box with other team members. ActorChris Kattannotably parodied her adolescent-sounding voice (as her "brother" Kippi Strug), and appeared onSaturday Night Live(in a segment in which she appeared alongside him).ESPN's "This is SportsCenter"ad campaign poked good-natured fun at her injury with two ads featuring various ESPN workers carrying her around.

Professional career and college

Shortly after her feat, Strug participated in theIce CapadesandDisney's World On Ice,then announced her retirement and enrolled inUCLAwhere she was a member of theKappa Alpha Thetawomen's fraternity. As a professional, she could not compete in NCAA gymnastics events, so she worked for a time as team manager instead, a behind-the-scenes role. She later transferred toStanford Universitywhere she earned a master's degree in social psychology. Strug also took part in aSemester at Seain the fall of 2000.

After gymnastics

In 2000, she was inducted into theInternational Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.

After graduation, Strug worked as an elementary school teacher at Tom Matsumoto Elementary School in San Jose, California, before moving to Washington, D.C. in 2003.

She worked as a staff assistant with the White House Office of Presidential Student Correspondence, moved to a job at the General Counsel in theTreasury Department,and in March 2005, joined theJustice Department'sOffice of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Preventionstaff as a presidential appointee.Strug has competed in marathons in Houston, New York, Boston and Chicago.

During the2004 Summer OlympicsinAthens,Strug was a correspondent forYahoo!inartistic gymnastics.In 2008, she appeared in a television commercial for theZaxby'srestaurant chain. Also in 2008, her history-making ordeal at the 1996 Olympic Games was featured in a commercial, narrated by actorMorgan Freemanfor the "Go World" campaign.

Personal life

Strug was born in Tucson, Arizona, the daughter of Melanie Barron and Dr. Burt Strug, acardiovascularsurgeon.Strug is Jewish.She married attorney Robert Fischer at the Skyline Country Club in Tucson, Arizona, on April 25, 2010.In March 2012, Strug gave birth to the couple's son.In 2014, she gave birth to their daughter.

Competition History

Year	Event	TF	AA	VT	UB	BB	FX
Junior
1990	American Classic
	Junior Pan American Games
	U.S. Championships		4
	Dutch Open
Senior
1991	Buckeye Classic
	USA-ROM Dual Meet		8
	Alamo Invitational		4
	U.S. Championships					4	5
	World Championships
1992	Alamo Invitational
	International Mixed Pairs	12
	World Championships			6	7
	U.S. Championships				4
	U.S. Olympic Trials
	Olympic Games
1993	American Cup
	International Mixed Pairs
	USA-BLR-UKR Meet		7
	Gander Memorial		4
	American Classic
	Swiss Cup	10
	U.S. Championships			4
	U.S. Olympic Festival
	World Championships			5			6
1994
	Team World Championships
1995	U.S. Olympic Festival
	U.S. Championships		5				4
	U.S. World Trials		4
	World Championships		7
1996	American Cup
	International Mixed Pairs	4
	U.S. Championships		5
	U.S. Olympic Trials		4
	Olympic Games

Popular culture

• Strug did a cameo onBeverly Hills, 90210in 1996.
• Strug was shown inMarie Clairemagazine's "The 8 Greatest Moments for Women in Sports".
• Strug is referenced inSabrina: The Teenage WitchSeason 1, Episode 10.
• Strug is referenced in the animated seriesBojack HorsemanSeason 5, Episode 5. When BoJack is challenged for his reference to Strug being outdated, he insists that he will update his references once we see the likes of Strug again.
• Strug had a voice cameo inKing of the HillSeason 2, Episode 14, "I Remember Mono", appearing in a dream sequence with Bobby Hill.
• Strug is referenced inCommunitySeason 4, Episode 7,Economics of Marine Biology.
• Strug is referenced inMurphy BrownSeason 9, Episode 11.
• Strug is referenced inHome Economics (TV series)Season 3, Episode 3,Sushi for Twelve, $482 Plus Delivery.
• Strug is referenced in an episode of the onlineYouTubeshowDemo Diskmade byFunhaus.
• Strug is referenced in the Season 9 episode ofRoseanneentitled "Roseambo" when Roseanne, after flipping off the roof of a train car and landing on her feet, delivers the line, "Eat your heart out, Kerri Strug."
• In 2020,Olivia Wildeannounced she would be directing abiopicbased on the bookLanding on My Feet: A Diary of Dreams.Thomasin McKenziehas been cast to portray Kerri.
• Strug is mentioned in theApple TV+showMythic Questduring a special episode bridging the first two seasons.
• She is referenced in a season two episode oftheSaved by the Bellreboot.A character falls and gets injured, but says he will "Kerri Strug it."
• Strug had a voice cameo inBirdgirlSeason 2, Episode 4, "Shoot from the Foop".

See also

• List of select Jewish gymnasts
• List of Olympic female gymnasts for the United States

External links

• Official website
• Kerri StrugatIMDb
• Kerri StrugatOlympics.com