USA gymnastics: How the “Final Five” got its nickname
The United States’ women’s gymnastics team took home the gold medal in all-around competition Tuesday, then dubbed themselves the “Final Five.”
The team, consisting of Simone Biles, Laurie Hernandez, Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas and Madison Kocian, blew past Russia for the U.S.’s second straight gold in women’s team all-around gymnastics. The Rio Olympics are the last for coach Martha Karolyi, who has led the program since 2001.
After winning the gold Tuesday, the team told reporters they would like to go by the nickname the “Final Five.” The Olympians came up with the name in their group text chat.
The group briefly considered the name “GLAMSquad,” a reference to their first initials, before setting it aside. Biles suggested “Final Five,” which the team agreed upon to represent Karolyi’s last Olympics, and the fact that only four women will be sent to Tokyo for the all-around final in 2020.
The team kept the nickname a secret until clinching gold, at which point they revealed it to the media and Karolyi, who cried when she heard the name. Karolyi told reporters the only other time she cried as a coach was when Nadia Comaneci won gold at the Montreal games in 1976.
SI’s Chris Chavez contributed to this report
