The Magnificent Seven
Before the hometown crowd of Atlanta, Georgia, the 1996 United States Olympics Gymnastics Team began the competition with high hopes. Shannon Miller, Dominique Dawes, Kerri Strug, Dominique Moceanu, Jaycie Phelps, Amy Chow, and Team Captain Amanda Borden shared a combined 94 years of training for this event. Perfection was a goal they strived to achieve but they understood that a perfect 10 was extremely rare. In fact, their coach, Béla Károlyi, was the coach for Nadia Comăneci, who was the first Olympic games gymnast to score a perfect 10. This occurred twenty years prior in the 1976 games. Yet, perfection was not as much of a goal as beating the Russians in the team competition. The Russians previously won the team competition gold in every Olympics it entered since the 1950s! The competition was fierce and the need to win was worth the struggle.
After the first rotation or team exercises on one specific apparatus, the Russians were in the lead. When the second rotation was complete, the Americans pulled out in front. They maintained this lead, and the final events for the Americans and Russians were the vault and the floor exercise respectively. The Americans initially excelled with their performances, and they were feeling hopeful. In the vault competition, the competitor is given two opportunities and the score of the highest vault is accepted. All of the Americans had completed their vault performances except Dominique Moceanu and Kerri Strug. If Dominique Moceanu could score 9.762 or higher, the Americans would have the gold even if the Russians scored perfect 10s. However, on both of Moceanu’s attempts she underrotated and fell backwards, rather than landing on her feet. Her highest score: 9.200. The Russians had the reigning world champion in the floor exercise, and the current Russian national champion in the floor exercise competing in that event at the same time the Americans were on the vault. One of these two teams would win the gold and the performances of these last competitors would determine the results.
The weight of this Olympic competition rested on the 4’8” 80lb frame of Kerri Strug. She was the final gymnast to approach the vault. If she could score a 9.493 or higher for either of her two attempts, the Americans would claim the gold. In her first attempt, Like Moceanu, she underrotated and fell backwards rather than landing on her feet. She also significantly injured her ankle. As she hobbled back to the starting point for her second attempt, she asked if the Americans could win the gold without her second vault. Her coach confirmed that the Russians could score enough for the gold. This final vault would determine the American’s fate: Gold, or Silver. With grit and determination, Kerri Strug ran toward the vault, did a somersault prior to hitting the springboard, pushed off of the horse, did a 1 ½ twist in the air, and stuck the landing basically on one foot. Immediately after the landing, she collapsed grabbing her ankle. Two of her coaches assisted her to get off of the mat as they anxiously waited on her score. Was it enough? Did the team fall short again? Did the Americans capture the gold?
YES! Kerri Strug scored 9.712 with the second vault and propelled the Americans to Gold. She gave it all she had. She stuck the landing even though she knew it would really hurt and cause additional injury. She stuck the landing even though it would rob her of an opportunity to participate in the individual events. She stuck the landing even though she accepted that perfection is not required to be a winner. These young ladies who won the gold are now called “The Magnificent Seven.”
Nadia Comăneci achieved the perfect 10, but it is doubtful that she could do that now. Some things in life are worth giving everything you have toward a goal even when achieving or maintaining perfection is not possible or even realistic. Rather than striving for perfection, make it your goal to everything with magnificence, and when you do not achieve magnificence, simply try again.