No Regrets – With her love for the sport revitalized, Gabby Douglas eyes Paris 2024

Update 3.28.24: Today USA Gymnastics announced the April 2024 National Team camp roster. 3-time Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas was not among the those who received an invitation. See Olympics.com take here.

Update: For the latest on Gabby Douglas, Click Here!

Editor’s Note: Inside Gymnastics interviewed Gabby Douglas for this feature on January 19 in Plano, TX. On February 27, following Douglas’ absence from Winter Cup due to COVID-19, Olympics.com broke the news that she had left WOGA on Sunday, February 25. On February 28, Douglas took to her Insta story to post: “COVID free and finally on the mend… time to get back to work” – but did not reveal her training location. On March 6, a representative at WME Agency confirmed to Inside Gymnastics that Douglas had resumed training at WOGA stating in an email: “Gabby is still at WOGA! She remains laser focused on doing everything in her power to put herself in the best position for Paris, including exploring every training opportunity that might best suit that mission. Presently, that is at WOGA.” Douglas will have upcoming opportunities to showcase her skills to the National Team staff and pave her path to Paris. The first could come in April at a National Team training camp or in May at the Core Hydration Classic. Per USA Gymnastics: “The High Performance Leadership Team has received requests from several non-national team athletes to attend April National Team Camp. April Camp invitations are based on National Team status, Winter Cup performances, capacity and athlete availability.”

The original story appeared February 7, 2024.

No Regrets – With her love for the sport revitalized, Gabby Douglas eyes Paris 2024

By Ashlee Buhler, with Christy Sandmaier contributing

Upon entering the lobby of the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy (WOGA) on a chilly January morning in Plano, the presence of past champions becomes impossible to overlook. The posters and colorful banners of numerous National, World and Olympic Champions adorning the gym walls serve as a constant reminder of the gymnastics royalty that has walked through its doors the last three decades. 

Peering through the lobby’s glass windows, we catch our first glimpse of three-time Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas, who is gymnastics royalty in her own right. It’s been a little over seven years since the world last saw Douglas take to the competition floor, but that’s soon to change as she prepares for the Winter Cup in just a few weeks — her first competition since the 2016 Rio Olympics. 

Today at practice a group of tiny WOGA gymnasts are swinging around the uneven bars just a few feet away from Douglas. Every so often one of them will peer over to catch a glimpse of the Olympic Champ. We are witnessing the undeniable inspiration of the next generation unfolding right before our eyes. 

As Douglas moves from one skill to the next, it’s immediately noticeable how strong and confident she looks. She works with an efficiency and lightness that rivals athletes nearly half her age – busting out rep after rep of nearly flawless Chow 1 ⁄ 2 transitions and double layout dismounts off the uneven bars. She makes it look effortless. It’s almost as if she never left the sport. 

But there’s no denying that Douglas had to work hard to get back to where she is at this moment. When she first stepped foot in the gym back in July 2022, there were some challenging days that inevitably allowed doubt to creep in. 

“The first day I walked into the gym I did kips on bars … well barely kips on bars, which is crazy,” Douglas said. “I couldn’t even cast and I’m like, ‘Am I sure I want to do this?’” However, with each passing day, the skills became easier and easier. “Once I started getting into the daily grind and being very consistent with the training, it became very easy to get the skills back,” she said. 

At the age of 28, Douglas is refining old skills in addition to learning new ones, including a stunning Healy to Ling to Piked Jaeger combination on the uneven bars – which she has never competed before. More importantly, she is loving the sport more than ever before and enjoying the learning process all over again.

“It’s so funny, I’ve never liked vault and I think I’m starting to like vault a little bit more than I did,” Douglas admitted. “In 2012 I used to love bars and hate everything else, but now I really like it all. I have a very mysterious floor routine, it’s very very different; so I love doing that on the floor. I love being solid on the beam. I kind of love it all now!”

Joy has been paramount to Douglas’ comeback journey. It was something she admittedly lost in the lead up to Rio, which led her to withdraw from the sport for the better half a decade. 

“Between 2013 and 2016, [the] journey was really hard for me,” Douglas shared. “Man, there was a lot going on and I went through a really rough time.”

Despite capturing gold with Team USA on the sport’s biggest stage in Rio, it seemed the world was focused on anything but her historic achievements. Douglas faced criticism for just about everything – from the way her hair looked to why she wasn’t smiling enough to whether or not she should be on the team. In the months and years that followed, many assumed Douglas’ days in the sport were done as she shied away from making appearances at gymnastics competitions and rarely posted about her career on social media. However, she was intentional about never announcing her retirement. “Honestly, deep down I never wanted to fully give it up and walk away.” 

Douglas took a step back and moved to Dallas in 2019 – what was once days spent in the gym became days on the farm with her little family of llamas and a small herd of cows. (She hopes to add some horses in the future!)   

“I was doing a lot of work on the farm and I don’t know, it just really put into perspective my life and all of the things,” Douglas said.

A Passion Rediscovered 

Over time the sports’ absence in her life left Douglas desiring an outlet for her competitive spirit. Once an athlete, always an athlete. The thought of getting back in the gym first crossed her mind when she took notice of how light and energized she felt while working out. So in July of 2022, Douglas returned to the gym with no real goal or intention, she just wanted to do what she loved again. It wasn’t until watching the 2022 U.S. Gymnastics Championships, about a month later, that Douglas’ felt the competitive fire burning deep inside her. “I was like, ‘How do I get this out – this competition spirit and nature?’” Douglas said. 

She weighed all her options and even contemplated taking up a new sport at first. “I told my sister, ‘Maybe I’ll do the rodeo or since I’m living on a farm, I’ll do barrel racing or something,’” Douglas quipped. “But then I was super scared to do that because you’re on a horse – and I’ve heard horror stories!” 

Nothing could fill that competitive void quite like gymnastics. Competing was always Douglas’ favorite aspect of doing the sport and watching a competition – something she hadn’t done in years – made her realize how much she missed competing. “I really think that time – stepping back away from the sport and figuring out myself, and life – helped me,” Douglas said. “Deep down, I really believe I didn’t want to walk away from gymnastics.”

With her joy for life and gymnastics revitalized, the decision to come back happened quickly, Douglas says. “I told my sister, ‘Hey, what if I start training again and just do Championships and not even do the Olympics?’ and she said, ‘Why do that?’ Why not take it all the way?’”

The Quest Begins 

Douglas chose WOGA in Plano, Texas for its proximity to home as well as its world-class pedigree. The gym is no stranger to success, with the two Olympic All-Around Champions prior to Douglas – Carly Patterson and Nastia Liukin – both hailing from WOGA. 2016 Olympic gold and silver medalist Madison Kocian also trained there during her Elite career.

Upon stepping foot in the gym, Douglas immediately welcomed the challenge of getting back in shape. “It became how quickly I could get into Olympic shape because I had been out for six years and didn’t touch any sort of equipment,” Douglas said. “It became a very good challenge for me to see how quickly I could get my skills back.” 

Douglas worked under the radar in the gym for a year before officially announcing her comeback in July 2023. 

Just a few months later in November, she attended her first U.S. National Team Camp since the 2016 Games. Quietly wondering what was in store, Douglas reached out to former club teammate and six-time World medalist Shilese Jones to get an idea on if or how the environment had changed. 

“I was like, ‘Give me the lowdown! How is it?’ And she was like, ‘Oh man. It’s very different!’” Douglas said. “It’s a little bit more chill than it was before, which is great because I think gymnastics is already a very stressful sport, so it’s definitely needed.”

The U.S. National Team Training Camps are now led by 2008 Olympic Silver Medalists Chellsie Memmel and Alicia Sacramone Quinn, along with Dan Baker, who were hired in May 2022.

The trio have emphasized a focus on prioritizing the athletes physical, emotional, and mental well-being above all else. 

This ethos perfectly resonates with Douglas’ primary comeback goal. Although Paris 2024 is ultimately in the back of her mind, Douglas’ focus lies more so on how she feels rather than the results. Walking back into her first National Team Camp in seven years, Douglas could feel the difference. 

“It was very different,” Douglas said. “Very different from my era of gymnastics! It was weird, you know, not hearing Martha [Karolyi], but it was definitely good. It’s changed and I think it’s changed for the better.”

Those positive changes have enabled Douglas to fully embrace the present moment, savoring each step in this journey with genuine enjoyment. “My biggest goal was to love the sport that I love doing,” Douglas said. “I never wanted to walk away and hate something that I love doing. My biggest goal is to just go out there and just do the best that I can at this point – and have more fun this time around!” 

The next big step for Douglas comes in Louisville, Kentucky in just a few weeks. Douglas plans to make a big statement at the Winter Cup by competing in the All-Around. “I’m super nervous to compete again,” Douglas said. “It’s been so long! But I feel like once I get going, it’s going to be fine.”

From there, the game plan consists of the U.S. Classic, the U.S. Championships, Olympic Trials and if all goes well, she hopes to add her name to an exclusive list of U.S. gymnasts who have competed in three Olympic Games. Douglas — along with Simone Biles — could join 1996 Olympic Gold Medalist Dominique Dawes as the only other U.S. female gymnasts to achieve such a feat. 

Douglas’ comeback not only reinstates her into the spotlight but also positions her uniquely to compete with two other Olympic All-Around Champions, namely Biles and the 2021 Champ Suni Lee, for a coveted spot on the U.S. Olympic Team. This unprecedented scenario adds an exciting and unparalleled dimension to the sport. 

“Being a part of that, I’m so grateful,” Douglas said. “I’m so grateful to be a part of something so big. I’m so excited to go back out there and just enjoy it all.”

No Regrets 

Many athletes have a why; something that draws them to the sport and keeps them coming back, even when times are tough. Sometimes it’s the people they draw inspiration from (for Gabby it’s her mother, sisters and teammates) and sometimes it’s the hardships themselves that fuel a desire to give it one more shot and leave with no regrets. 

“My why is I never want to have regrets,” Douglas said. “And that’s why I never wanted to announce any sort of retirement or say I’m done with gymnastics, even though things didn’t go well the last Olympics. I never wanted to quit on a bad day … if I give it my all and really push myself and give it everything I’ve got, then I’ll be satisfied and be like, ‘Ok, I can finally rest.’” 

Taking a step away from the sport allowed Douglas’ to confront the challenges she felt prevented her from performing at her best in 2016. Now in 2024, there’s an inner peace that comes with her new mindset, along with the experience and confidence that comes with age. 

It’s these qualities that Douglas feels are the biggest differences between the starry eyed 16-year-old who stood atop the medal podium in London in 2012 and the 28-year-old who is gearing up for what she hopes will be her third Olympics this summer. Her age she feels is a testament to how the sport has evolved into a place where adult women can thrive. 

“I love how the sport has evolved and there are older girls out there [who are] more experienced and they have a calm nature about themselves,” Douglas said. “You still have the young 16-year-olds out there, but it’s great! I think it shows everyone that you don’t have to be 16 or 17 to keep going. I remember when I came back for my second Olympics and everyone was like, ‘18? No, that’s very, very old.’ I think we’re going to push that boundary of age.” 

With age comes wisdom, but if she could go back in time and speak to the younger version of herself – the Gabby that the world first fell in love with in London – she believes she could still learn a thing or two. In fact, she flips the script.

“I say the younger version needs to talk to the older version of Gabby,” Douglas said. “To never lose that joy that I do have for the sport because joy is truly the strength that I draw from to do gymnastics.” 

And so the journey begins! As Douglas looks to leave the sport she loves with no regrets, she hopes her journey will inspire others to listen to their hearts as well. 

“I would say honestly if you really put in work and really believe in yourself and also [if] other people have so much support and belief in you, then why not go for it?” Douglas said. “No matter your race, no matter how old you are, no matter the circumstance, I would say go for those dreams. You only live once, so I would say definitely go for it.” 

Watch our exclusive interview with Gabby Douglas and get a glimpse of her training ahead of her competitive return at the 2024 Winter Cup!

Lead Photo Courtesy of Gina Clary Photography

2016 Olympic Photos by Ricardo Bufolin for Inside Gymnastics