Olympic star Laurie Hernandez is again, and whereas she didn’t win the 2021 Winter Cup, her Hamilton-inspired flooring routine was a present stopper in her first gymnastics meet because the 2016 Rio Olympics.
That is proper—Saturday’s competitors marked Hernandez’s first meet in 1,657 days.
The theatre fan’s routine, which landed her in eleventh place for the train (12.05), featured “The Room The place It Occurs” from Hamilton. Hernandez first teased the ground routine on TikTok in January, sharing, “I had a lot enjoyable making this routine.”
She also tweeted on Saturday that she’s been listening to Hamilton’s soundtrack for her warmup music, making the swap from “The Best Showman.”
The 20-year-old additionally tallied the fifth-highest rating on the steadiness beam (13.95), making ready herself for the harder spring and summer season competitions forward.
“It was terrifying to initially return on the market,” she said to NBC Sports. “Tremendous watered-down routines so we might dip my toe again within the water and get the sensation of what it feels prefer to compete once more at such a excessive degree… I’m actually enthusiastic about how at this time went, and I feel it foreshadows a very good meet season.”
Whereas taking a hiatus from the game is not unusual due to how grueling elite gymnastics is on the physique, there could have been darker causes for the break. Hernandez’s former coach, Maggie Haney, was banned by USA Gymnastics for eight years due to bodily and emotionally abusing gymnasts like Hernandez and others. It was diminished to 5 years after Haney’s enchantment.
Hernandez left Haney after the Rio Video games and moved to Los Angeles. She’s now coaching below Jenny Zhang and her husband Howie Liang. USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour reported that previous to Hernandez’s routine, Zhang seen the younger gymnast was scuffling with a tumbling transfer within the flooring routine and advised Hernandez to not do it.
“She was like, `No, I would like you to have time. I would like you to hit and I would like you to have time,’” Hernandez mentioned. “She was hellbent on ensuring that I loved myself in my first meet again.”
As Hernandez threw her fingers as much as sign the top of her flooring routine, the smile on her face confirmed that she was completely satisfied to be again.
“There was nothing expression-wise to choreograph,” Hernandez mentioned to USA TODAY Sports activities, “(as a result of) I do know that if I am having a very good time, it should simply fly out of my face.”
