Kerri Strug
Kerri Strug (born November 19, 1977) is a former American gymnast from Tucson, Arizona.
Strug was trained by the legendary coach Bela Karolyi, and she was a part of the United States national team as a senior member since 1991. In 1992, she won a bronze medal at the Barcelona Olympics. In 1995, she was a member of the gold medal winning team at the World Championships. However, her shining moment came during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, when Strug, after injuring herself on her first vault, landed a great second vault for a score of 9.712, guaranteeing her team the gold medal. The moment was bittersweet, however, as the injury she sustained on her first vault prevented her from competing in the all-around competition, which she qualified for.
Strug immediately became a national sports hero and her fame reached amazing heights, visiting President Bill Clinton, appearing at various television talk shows, being on the cover of Sports Illustrated and appearing on the cover of Wheaties cereal. Her Olympic moment is regarded by many as one of the greatest Olympic moments ever. ESPN's This is SportsCenter ad campaign poked fun at her injury with two ads featuring various ESPN workers carrying her around.
Shortly after her feat, avid autograph signer Strug announced her retirement and enrolled in UCLA, but not before participating on the Ice Capades and Disney's World On Ice tours.
