ByEmily Leibert,
a morning blogger for the Cutwho specializes in coverage at the intersection of gender and sports, the arts, and our relationship to our bodies
Photo: GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP via Getty Images
For many fledgling Olympians, this year’s Games mark a once-in-a-lifetime shot at glory, rendering most athletes a ball of nerves, grit, and focus. Except, apparently, if you’re the internet’s beloved“Pommel Horse Guy,” otherwise known as Team USA’s Stephen Nedoroscik. The gymnast and pommel-horse specialist has won over audiences not so much for his flawless execution on his preferred apparatus but for his willingness to nap, chill, and appear pretty bored for three or more hours while waiting for his time to shine: that is, the moment he mounts the pommel horse. Energetically, Nedoroscik seems like the quiet quitter of Olympians; people, in particular, love his “nerdy kid” glasses. Technically, he is the sole reason that Team USA’s men’s gymnastics team broke its 16-year-medal drought on Monday, according to NBC News. In other words, he is so much more than just Pommel Horse Guy.
The 25-year-old Penn State alum was tapped for Team USA to fill a very specific need, NBC reports. The men’s gymnastics team hadn’t won any medals since Bush was still in office and naturally has had to contend with the charm and unfettered greatness of the women’s team. While gymnasts often have a specialty apparatus or performance, they typically need to be able to participate in multiple events to make the Olympic squad. Not so for Pommel Horse Guy. Nedoroscik is apparently so good at pommel horse and pommel horse only that the team made an exception for him, banking on the man appearing to fall asleep on their sidelines (NBC claims he was just meditating, okay) to bring home the gold … or whatever he could manage. Sure enough, with Nedoroscik’s help, they scored a bronze medal in the team final on Monday. Big ups to Pommel Horse Guy.
Since Monday’s 40-second performance, we now know that Nedoroscik (1) can solve a Rubik’s Cube in 8.68 seconds, (2) enjoys playing video games, and (3) wears sport glasses for “comfort and superstitious reasons,” according to his official bio. In an interview with the Washington Post,Nedoroscik’s coach Syque Caesar also described the phenom as “quirky, funny, goofy” and someone who “dances to his own tune.” And if you missed the pommel-horse magic the first time around, not to worry: Nedoroscik will compete in Saturday’s apparatus final with the chance to bring home a gold medal of his own.
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