Hesly Rivera, who celebrated her 16th birthday last month, will compete in Paris in a few weeks as part of the U.S. team alongside Olympic veterans Simone Biles and Suni Lee.
The New Jersey gymnast earned a coveted spot on the women’s gymnastics team last weekend after a strong showing at the U.S. Trials in Minneapolis. At just 16, she’s the youngest athlete to compete for the U.S. later this month.
This relative newcomer will be competing for an Olympic medal on the world stage for the first time, but she is no stranger to winning, having recently competed at the 2024 Winter Cup, where she placed third in the individual all-around and won gold on balance beam.
“I’m so grateful to be here and to have been selected for the Olympic team. I’ve sacrificed so much to get here, so I want to thank God, my coaches, my family, my friends and my teammates. I can’t believe I’m here,” Rivera told NBC DFW after making the team.
Rivera said she was able to keep her cool during the qualifiers despite competing against former Olympians.
“I was just thinking about it like any other meet. I’m just going to go out there and do what I have to do. Basically just do what I do in the gym. I thought it was just me and the balance beam, or just me and the bars. I try to calm myself down beforehand. [was thinking] “I was kind of the underdog so I didn’t feel a lot of pressure, which was probably a good thing. I just went out there and did what I had to do,” she said.
New Jersey seems to be developing a reputation for sending young athletes to the U.S. team. Eight years ago, Old Bridge’s Laurie Hernandez traveled to Rio and won a team gold medal and an individual silver medal on the balance beam.
Who will represent the U.S. women’s gymnastics team in the 2024 Olympics?
- Simone Biles
- Jordan Chiles
- Suni Lee
- Jade Carey
- Hesley Rivera
- Jocelyn Roberson (Away substitute)
- Lian Wong (Away substitute)
