Gymnast Aly Raisman's mom: "I can't control" emotions in stands
With Tuesday’s near-perfect floor routine, gymnast Aly Raisman ended her run in Rio with a silver medal behind friend and teammate Simone Biles. The 22-year old now has three medals to add to the three she won in London in 2012, reports CBS News’ Jamie Yuccas.
The floor
routine has always been Raisman’s specialty. In London she was the first American
woman ever to win gold in the event and on Tuesday -- against all odds -- she
returned to cement her legacy.
“I don’t think anyone knows how many hours goes into the training
and how grueling it is,” mother Lynn Raisman said.
Father Rick and Lynn have spent much of the past two decades living as gym
rats. So it should come as no surprise that they watch every flip jump and
twist with nervous anticipation.
“You’re just so caught up in the moment and you know even though she practices
it a million times it’s still -- you still got to do it,” Rick said.
“The whole time I’m just
thinking, ‘Get through this, get off it. Hurry up, hurry up.’ Let that minute and a
half go by quick!” Lynn said.
“Do you feel just as burnt out at the end of the routine?” Yuccas asked.
“When we finished watching the honor meet, our family was like, ‘Oh my God, we’re exhausted,’” Lynn said.
While their performance in the stands won’t earn them any medals, they have
become almost as famous as their daughter.
“You’re kind of oblivious to anything else that’s going on in the world, so
you’re just so focused on that routine,” Rick said.
“You guys don’t have any desire to keep it together, do you?” Yuccas asked.
“I can’t control it,” Lynn said.
Raisman’s performance in Rio is a redemption of sorts, after taking a year-long
break from the sport following the London Games.
“She’ll never say it was harder coming back, but I think as her dad
and kind of being into sports, that I just know it was a lot harder,” Rick said.
Even the best gymnasts rarely make it to multiple Olympics, so Raisman’s final flip on to the podium is that much more impressive.
“The crowd is just like so energetic, and they’re still so supportive. ... It’s very special and something that we’ll always cherish,” Raisman said in an interview after winning silver in the all-around competition.
Raisman’s silver Tuesday makes her the first American to medal on floor at back-to-back Games. Something else American fans can cherish: the U.S. women’s gymnastics team has the most medals in a single Olympics since the USSR in 1972.