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Dominique Dawes continues to change gymnastics years after historic feat

Riccardo S. Savi/Getty Images

Dominque Dawes is Olympic greatness personified as the winner of four medals across three Summer Games, so it’s no surprise the 45-year-old was tuned into the Beijing Winter Olympics this month.

Speed skater Erin Jackson, in particular, captured the gymnastics icon’s attention after putting on a dominant performance to become the first Black woman to take home a speed-skating medal in Olympic history.

“I was definitely excited for that amazing feat because I know it’s going to motivate a number of young girls of color to see speed skating as an opportunity for them,” Dawes told Just Women’s Sports.

Dawes is familiar with making history, having changed the landscape of her sport in 1996 when she became the first Black woman to win an individual Olympic medal in gymnastics. The Maryland native was also part of the “Magnificent Seven,” the first American group to win the gymnastics team competition when they came in first at the Atlanta Games.

“It’s not something I definitely stay fixated on,” Dawes says of her groundbreaking achievement. “It does warm and touches my heart when people bring up the Olympic feats and the fact that they watched those Olympic Games with a loved one and the fond memories that they still hold onto, and many times that loved one is no longer here.”

Although those Games are now 26 years in the rearview mirror, Dawes can still recall being overcome with emotion before she entered the Georgia Dome for the first time.

“It’s unlike anything I’ve experienced in life, the enormous amount of pressure,” she says. “Something that Simone Biles talked about was having the weight of the world on her shoulders, and that’s really what it felt like to be one of the leaders of Magnificent Seven for the ’96 Olympic Games.

“I had an emotional breakdown because it was so much pressure, and the weight that I felt emotionally as well as mentally that I was not only representing my country, but I was also representing my race.”

Dawes cites her teammates as her grounding force amid the stress, a feeling to which many Olympians and athletes can relate.

Mikaela Shiffrin made headlines during the Beijing Olympics after skiing out of three races, including her two best events, the slalom and the giant slalom. While onlookers searched for answers about what could have happened to the remarkably consistent skier, a welcome conversation emerged about athlete pressure, mental health and the dangers of the pursuit of perfection.

“The fans really just see everything that is on center stage, in the spotlight, when you get to the Olympic Games. They don’t know the journey, they don’t know the blood, sweat and tears, they don’t know the sacrifice,” Dawes says “They don’t recognize that you’re a human and you’re dealing with loss, and you’re dealing with pain, and you’re dealing with all the different emotions that come with just life, and that you’re also sacrificing so much to make it to the Olympics.”

Dawes started her Olympic journey at 6 years old and made her first team at 15, meaning her four-minute shot at glory was nine years in the making. The immense weight of that moment, when athletes are expected to execute on all the skills they spent preparing, can be daunting and debilitating.

“That’s what I love about the dialogue that’s happening today about mental health,” Dawes says, “because it’s OK for our young people and young adults to recognize that they need to put their mental health first.”

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Dawes competes for Team USA at the 1996 Atlanta Games. (Eric Feferberg/AFP via Getty Images)

Dawes was outspoken about the stress of competitive gymnastics in the Peacock Series “Golden.” The six-part docuseries, which Dawes helped produce, follows five elite American gymnasts on their paths to the Tokyo Olympics, including all-around champion Sunisa Lee.

More than anything, the Tokyo Games will be remembered for an unprecedented move by star Simone Biles. The American gymnast and seven-time Olympic medalist stepped back from a series of events following a sudden onset of the “twisties,” sparking widespread acknowledgement of athletes’ mental health.

“I think it’s great that she was able to listen to her inner voice and do what was best for her,” Dawes says of Biles, penning a Washington Post op-ed in July in support of the young star’s stance.

While pressure is not unique to gymnastics, Dawes is adamant that the culture in the sport must change.

USA Gymnastics has been under intense scrutiny for years over its handling of the Larry Nassar sex abuse scandal. The former USAG team doctor was convicted of sexually assaulting minors in 2018, among other charges, with at least 265 young women and girls, many of whom are gymnasts, alleging abuse.

Béla Károlyi and Márta Károlyi, who were at the helm when Nassar was on Team USA’s staff, have also been criticized for their negligence and reportedly abusive coaching techniques.

“I think there needs to be an overhaul of those that are out on the floor currently coaching that are detrimental to the overall health and well-being to these young girls and these young women that are on the floor,” Dawes says.

Gymnasts like Ali Raisman and Biles have been outspoken about their disillusionment with USA Gymnastics’ commitment to athlete safety and have repeatedly demanded change. Dawes says the right people still aren’t in positions of power, despite the athletes’ objections.

“I believe the way we can save our sport is by getting the right coaches in there, and currently, we don’t have them on the national level, in my opinion,” Dawes says.

She is also careful to point out that abuse isn’t unique to USAG, but a problem in private gyms as well. Dawes has been vocal about the toxic environment she trained in under her personal coach, and that the neglect she suffered is something she still carries with her today.

“I went through years of anxiety. I was terrified each and every morning going to practice. I would cry all the time, I was hyperventilating quite a bit,” says Dawes, who felt at the time that she didn’t have the choice of leaving the gym or the sport. Those who did walk away from gymnastics were ostracized and targeted for their changing bodies, she says.

“It made young people feel shameful about going through puberty, about growing up, about becoming a young woman,” says Dawes. “And that’s sad because it really does damage. It wrecks a young person’s self-esteem and self-worth.”

The culture that continues to plague gymnastics is why Dawes has stuck with the sport, opening the Dominique Dawes Gymnastics & Ninja Academy with her husband in an effort to reform gymnastics from the inside.

“I don’t want my poor kids to experience what I experienced,” she says. “It’s a beautiful sport, and it can be done the right way with the right people. We want to offer a positive, empowering and encouraging environment for young girls that want to pursue the sport of gymnastics.”

Dawes has plans to to expand her gym in Clarksburg, Md. in the fall of 2022, and perhaps more beyond that. She finds comfort in the fact that the pain she underwent years ago can now serve a greater purpose.

“That’s what drives me today, is I don’t want today’s generation or tomorrow’s generation to go through what I went through,” Dawes says. “I’m doing it today because I am standing up for the young Dominique.”

Golden is available to stream now, as Peacock honors Black History Month this February by spotlighting content from Black creators and about the Black experience.

Clare Brennan is an associate editor at Just Women’s Sports.

Team USA Holds Off Brazil to Win 2025 FIBA AmeriCup Championship

The USA Basketball team and coaching staff pose with a 2025 FIBA AmeriCup Champions sign after winning gold.
A young USA squad held off Brazil to claim the 2025 FIBA AmeriCup title on Sunday. (USA Basketball)

USA Basketball lifted the 2025 FIBA AmeriCup trophy on Sunday, taking down defending champions Brazil 92-84 to top the tournament's podium for the fifth time.

Pitting a roster of NCAA talent against Brazil pros like Chicago Sky center Kamilla Cardoso, Team USA battled back from a seven-point third-quarter deficit, then dominated the fourth quarter to send Brazil home with silver medals.

"What a performance by our team," said USA head coach Kara Lawson following the title win. "We knew it was going to be just a tough, physical game."

With 27 points in Sunday's championship game, guard Mikayla Blakes (Vanderbilt) set a USA AmeriCup scoring record en route to earning tournament MVP honors.

"This is my first time playing with USA Basketball, and to be able to cap it off with a win, a gold medal, and to play alongside such great players and great coaches, I couldn't ask for anything better," said Blakes.

After adding 16 points, seven rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals in her 21 minutes off the bench on Sunday, guard Hannah Hidalgo (Notre Dame) joined Blakes in representing the USA on the 2025 FIBA AmeriCup All-Star roster.

Booking a spot on the tournament's All-Star second team was US guard Olivia Miles (TCU), whose 50 assists throughout the competition shattered the modern era's previous single-event record of 46.

Along with their gold medals, Sunday's win also gives the US automatic entry into the 2026 FIBA World Cup in Germany, where they'll look to snag a 12th overall and fifth consecutive world championship.

WNBA Standings Frontrunners Phoenix, Atlanta Right the Ship with Monday Wins

Atlanta Dream center Brittney Griner celebrates a turnover during a 2025 WNBA game.
Brittney Griner's Atlanta Dream bounced back with a win over the Golden State Valkyries on Monday. (Andrew J. Clark/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images)

Two WNBA championship contenders found their way back into the win column on Monday, when the No. 2 Phoenix Mercury and No. 4 Atlanta Dream each notched emphatic victories following disappointing weekend results.

Phoenix tasted revenge by blasting No. 11 Dallas 102-72, with guard Sami Whitcomb's game-leading 36 points and 2025 All-Star forward Alyssa Thomas's triple-double (15 points, 15 assists, 10 rebounds) sending the Wings' rookie core packing.

After last Thursday's surprise upset, Dallas's injury-shortened lineup couldn't keep pace in a rematch with the deeper, more experienced Mercury.

The No. 6 Golden State Valkyries also showed their limits on Monday, dropping their sixth road game of the season in a 90-81 loss to the Dream.

Energized by a 24-point performance from 2025 All-Star starter Allisha Gray, Atlanta capitalized on the Valks' fourth-quarter collapse, outscoring the 2025 expansion side 15-2 to book the win.

"I'm telling the refs, 'This is a hard game for us,'" Golden State head coach Natalie Nakase said afterwards. "I get it — home cooking. But to me, I thought for sure that [Valkyries players] were going up just as aggressive as their players, and we just did not get the whistle."

With All-Star Weekend fast approaching, regular-season Cinderella stories are beginning to break away from the true powerhouses, as teams keep chasing Minnesota at the top of the WNBA standings.

How to watch the Phoenix Mercury this week

While Atlanta will be resting until Friday, Phoenix is back in action on Wednesday, when the Mercury will host the league-leading Lynx at 3:30 PM ET.

Live coverage of the game will air on WNBA League Pass.

OL Lyonnes Boosts Midfield with USWNT Stars Lily Yohannes, Korbin Albert

USWNT midfielders Lily Yohannes and Korbin Albert pose in the new 2025 US jerseys.
USWNT stars Lily Yohannes and Korbin Albert will suit up for OL Lyonnes in the fall. (Brad Smith/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)

Eight-time UEFA Champions League winners OL Lyonnes will have even more US flair next season, with the French football titan announcing the signings of USWNT stars Lily Yohannes and Korbin Albert over the last week.

Joining the newly rebranded Lyon side from Dutch club Ajax on a reported €450,000 ($527,000) transfer fee, Yohannes's new contract runs through 2028.

Albert also signed a three-year deal on Friday, solidifying her transfer from Première Ligue rivals PSG — the club that the 21-year-old has played for since her early exit from Notre Dame in 2023.

Yohannes and Albert will join USWNT captain Lindsey Heaps in the OL Lyonnes midfield, with US billionaire and multi-team owner Michele Kang (Washington Spirit, London City Lionesses) overseeing the operation.

Backed by her global women's sports organization Kynisca, Kang reportedly beat WSL giants Chelsea FC to the punch in signing 18-year-old Yohannes on Monday.

OL Lyonnes has been stocking up after failing to make it past the 2024/25 Champions League semifinals, adding PSG striker Marie-Antoinette Katoto, Chelsea FC fullback Ashley Lawrence, Barcelona defender Ingrid Engen, and Vfl Wolfsburg attacker Jule Brand to a roster now led by former Washington Spirit head coach Jonatan Giráldez.

While international tournaments play out across the world this summer, the club carousel continues to spin as heavyweight teams vie for the sport's top talent.

NWSL Stars Score Big in WAFCON Openers

Zambia players, including NWSL stars Barbra Banda and Racheal Kundananji, pose during a training session before 2025 WAFCON.

The NWSL is already making a splash at this year's Women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), with three of the league's top scorers stealing the spotlight following the 2025 tournament's July 5th kick-off.

Zambia forwards Barbra Banda (Orlando Pride) and Racheal Kundananji (Bay FC) both found the back of the net in their national team's group-stage debut against host country Morocco, helping the Copper Queens earn an opening point in the 2-2 Saturday draw.

Banda struck first, notching the tournament's first goal with one of her signature long-range strikes in the first minute of the match, before Kundananji answered Morocco's 12th-minute penalty equalizer with a Banda-assisted 27th minute goal of her own.

Notably, the NWSL is powering Zambia's entire front line, as Banda's Pride teammates, Grace Chanda and Prisca Chilufya, joined the scorers in leading the Copper Queens' Saturday attack.

Then on Sunday, Kundananji's Bay FC teammate Asisat Oshoala wrote her name on the 2025 WAFCON scoresheet, registering Nigeria's first tournament goal by heading the ball past Tunisia goalkeeper Salima Jobrani in the fourth minute of the match.

With Houston Dash defender Michelle Alozie helping hold down their back line, the Super Falcons opened their WAFCON account with a 3-0 win.

How to watch NWSL stars at 2025 WAFCON

WAFCON action revs back up when the second matches of group play kick off on Wednesday, as the 12 2025 tournament teams all chase defending champions South Africa.

Zambia will hunt their first tournament victory against Senegal at 12 PM ET on Wednesday, before Nigeria looks to maintain their winning ways against Botswana at 3 PM ET on Thursday.

All 2025 WAFCON matches will air live on beIN Sports.

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