At The 2024 Olympics, She Was A Surprise. In 2026, Hezly Rivera Is Undeniable
At only 18, Hezly Rivera is the back-to-back national champion. Two years after making the Olympic team as an unproven rookie, Rivera rose in Phoenix to become the standard-bearer for U.S. gymnastics.
Hezly Rivera, a 18-year-old gymnast from North Jersey, stunned the gymnastics world by winning her second consecutive U.S. National title at the 2026 U.S. Championships in Phoenix, Arizona. This marked a comeback after a poor start on Friday's uneven bars routine, where she had a mistake leading to a significant score drop. However, Rivera's resilience shone through as she posted the highest beam score of the competition and ultimately won the title by more than a full-point.
This victory solidified her position as the best gymnast in the United States and added her name to a list of Olympic champions who won back-to-back U.S. all-around titles. Rivera's journey to this point began in Paris, where she joined the star-studded 2024 Olympic team as an unlikely rookie. Since then, she has taken ownership of her gymnastics and U.S. gymnastics, consistently delivering strong performances and overcoming adversity.
Despite injuries threatening her goals, Rivera's resilience and determination have led her to become an undeniable leader of the 2026 U.S. gymnastics team. As she prepares for the upcoming 2026 World Championships, it seems only a matter of time before her U.S. dominance extends to an international stage, potentially at the 2026 World Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
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