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I guess it’s most peoples nature to point out negatives first instead of thinking of the
positives….As people are hating and talking about how nappy or messed up Gabby Douglas’
hair is instead of focusing on the fact that she is 16 and she made it to the olympics as a
gymnast….#SMH
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Gabby’s mom spoke about the hard decision she had to make to give her daughter a chance:
After winning the all-around at U.S. Olympic Trials, Gabrielle Douglas has emerged as a fav-
orite to win gold in gymnastics. The 16-year-old is known for her high-flying routines and big
difficulty marks. However, her Olympic dreams might not have come true if it weren’t for a
tough decision by her mother. Natalie Hawkins, Gabrielle’s mother, talked to Fourth-Place
Medal about letting her daughter leave their Virginia Beach home and close family bonds to
train with Chow’s Gymnastics in Iowa. Hawkins called the decision to send her then 14-year-
old to a state she had only visited once gut-wrenching. “Worst, gut-wrenching decision I have
ever made in my entire life. Lost sleep, lost hair, earned a few grays, I cried. I went through
the whole gamut of emotions, I was angry, and then I came to a place of resolve. I said, ‘OK,
Natalie, you have this one chance to get this right. You mess this up, it’s not going to come
around again. This is gymnastics.’”
