Olympic gymnast and local-girl-made-good Dominique Dawes may have retired her leotard, but the champion tumbler, now 32, isn’t close to slowing down yet. After competing and medaling in three Olympic Games and winning a spot in the U.S. Olympic Committee Hall of Fame, Dawes is now motivating young people in Washington, D.C., and across the country to get moving, too. She is chairperson of JuMMP, the Junior Monumental Milers Program for the Greater Washington Sports Alliance, which challenges D.C. youth to run or walk 26.2 miles in 23 weeks. The initiative culminates with a victory lap at the National Marathon on March 21. Here, Dawes discusses sports, being a child athlete and whether she still “flips out” anymore.
Do you see Washington as a sports town?
People here care a lot about their health and fitness. Walking, jogging, biking: It’s not uncommon to drive around the D.C. area and see kickball or soccer games going on. I think that really has to do with the character of D.C. and just how active people are here.
You started gymnastics at 6 and were competing by 10. Was there ever a time when you wanted to quit?
When I turned 18, I decided to [forgo my Stanford scholarship] and go professional. I then trained for two years for the 1996 Olympics. Those were the two hardest years of my life. You start to realize there’s more to this world than just flips.
You were the first African American to win a medal in gymnastics in the Olympics and you were only 19. As a young athlete, did you realize the significance of that win?
As a young person, I wasn’t aware—thank goodness. I was just doing what I like to do and I wasn’t thinking too much about it. And then it was 2002, and I was retired from the sport, it was the Oscars and Halle Berry was up for best actress. She wins and I remember sitting there and tears started falling down my face. [I realized] that people need to see other people doing it before they believe they have the power to do it.
As a kid athlete, did you have a lot of pressure to succeed?
There wasn’t a lot of pressure on me from my family. But I think I’m pretty driven myself. Gymnasts tend to be perfectionists. It’s probably from walking on a balance beam.
You retired once but came back to compete in your third Olympic Games. How did that happen?
I retired for the first time in 1998, had a normal life, was dating and going to the university. One day I was watching gymnastics on TV and for some reason, I thought I was still good. I was praying that my coach would tell me to get a life and finish school. Instead, she told me to come and practice at 6 a.m., and so I was there [the next day] training for another Olympic Games.
Now that you’ve officially stopped competing, what are you up to these days?
My number one passion has been motivating people. I think the one thing young people are struggling with is becoming more physically active. JuMMP is going to combat that. I also do a little coaching. I do motivational speaking, and I’m working on a book project.
JuMMP has become a huge part of your life now. What makes the program so special?
We’re going to work hard, we’re going to strive and we’re going to challenge ourselves. So I think it’s not only helped the kids physically but, I think, emotionally, and taught them qualities to become more successful in life. And the kids are excited. The kids were running and they were engaged and asking questions. The best of the program isn’t about standing up there and speaking. It’s about getting them active and getting them moving.
Why do you think JuMMP is so important?
I think it’s going to be a great program for the kids and hopefully it’ll be sustainable. It won’t just be something they do up until the marathon. It’ll be something that transfers to the rest of their lives. Because I know if I wasn’t involved in sports and activity when I was young, I don’t think I’d care about my physical health as much now.
You went to the Olympics in 2008 for the first time not as an athlete, but as a reporter for Yahoo! Sports. How was it as a spectator?
I was tearing up sitting there—not tearing up wishing I was down there, but tearing up thinking wow, this is really something amazing. But you don’t tend to notice that when you’re involved with the Olympic Games. You notice it when you’re removed from it.
Today, motivational speaking and hosting gymnastic clinics have become a big part of your life. What does it take to get kids interested in not just sports, but staying active in general?
We talk about the program and then we get them up and get them moving. It’s not just preaching. We get them running around the track. The point of it is when you get out there and you say the right thing to kids and you encourage them and you give them positive programs, they’re going to want to be on board right away. I don’t think I’d be as knowledgeable about my physical health if I wasn’t active in my sports.
You’re famous for your “up-and-back” tumbling pass. Could you still pull it off if asked?
You would hope! If I went back into that gym, I would embarrass myself. I would probably have some busted ankles and busted knees. I could do some of it, but it wouldn’t be nearly as good!
Visit www.gwsportsalliance.com and www.dominiquedawes.com for more information on JuMMP and what Dawes is up to this year.