Team USA

5 Things to Know: Get to Know Your Favorite Team USA Athletes

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These Olympic athletes are more than their sport. Get to know some of your favorite Team USA athletes in our "5 Things to Know" video series.

5 Things to Know About Jade Carey | Gymnastics

The 2020 Tokyo Olympics may be Jade Carey’s first Olympics Games, but she’s already a star in the gymnastics world. Here are five things to know about the U.S. athlete who is filling in for Simone Biles in the women’s gymnastics all-around.

  1. Her strengths are floor and vault: During qualifiers, she received the second-highest vault score and third-highest score in floor.
  2. 2020 may be her first Olympics ...
  3. But she's already a star: Carey won seven medals at world championships between 2018 and 2020, including six golds.
  4. The Phoenix native is trained by her dad.
  5. She postponed college to compete at the Tokyo Olympics. Carey deferred enrollment to attend Oregon State in 2017 to train for Tokyo.

5 Things to Know About Michael Cherry | Track & Field

  1. A world champion: Michael Cherry has five World Championship medals, including two golds. He also has three silver medals.
  2. First time, long time: The Tokyo Olympics is his first Olympic games.
  3. A pair of colleges: Cherry ran collegiate track at Florida State before transferring to Louisiana State University.
  4. Roll call: He was an honor roll student while attending Oscar Smith High School.
  5. Footing the bill: He owns more than 300 pairs of sneakers.

5 Things to Know About Will Claye | Track & Field

  1. No stranger to the Olympics: Will Claye is is a three-time Olympian who competed in London, Rio and now Tokyo.
  2. Searching for gold: Claye has two silver medals in the triple jump and a bronze in the long jump.
  3. The path to Florida: Claye went to high school in Phoenix, Arizona, before attending the University of Oklahoma. He transferred to the University of Florida after his sophomore year.
  4. A SoCal connection: Claye trains at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California.
  5. A track and field family: Claye is married to hurdler Queen Harrison. He proposed to her after winning his silver medal in Rio.

5 Things to Know About Ryan Crouser | Shot Put

  1. Already golden: Ryan Crouser won the gold medal in the shot put in the 2016 games in Rio.
  2. Olympic family: His father Mitch was an alternate on the 1984 U.S. Olympic Team and his uncle competed in 1988 and 1992.
  3. A Longhorn: He has degrees in economics and finance from the University of Texas.
  4. From the great Northwest: Ryan's hometown is Portland, Oregon, and he attended Sam Barlow High School.
  5. A man of many hobbies: He enjoys fishing, kayaking, bow-hunting and camping.

5 Things to Know About Colin Duffy | Climbing

  1. At 17 years old, he's the youngest member of the USA Climbing Team.
  2. He started climbing at 5 years old at ABC Kids Climbing in Boulder, Co.
  3. He has many youth national titles. Duffy is a 10-time youth national champion and 2-time youth world champion, according to Team USA.
  4. He loves math and science. These are the athlete's two favorite subjects in school and he is also a puzzle and Rubik's cube lover.
  5. He wants to be an engineer. "I'm going straight to college after high school," Duffy told Team USA. "I really enjoy STEM, that's why engineering is the goal."

5 Things to Know About Sakura Kokumai | Karate

  1. Sakura Kokumai was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. She now lives in Stevenson Ranch, California.
  2. She's been on the U.S. National Team for 14 years. She's been a member of USA Karate National Team since 2007.
  3. She started karate at age 7. Kokumai started the sport when she was in Honolulu.
  4. She doesn't just do karate. She revealed to Team USA that she can sail as well.
  5. She has a masters degree. Kokumai has a masters degree in international relations from Wasedea University.

5 Things to Know About Nelly Korda | Golf

  1. American golfer Nelly Korda entered the Olympics ranked number one in the world.
  2. She is coming off her third victory on the LPGA Tour.
  3. Her younger sister Jessica entered fourth in the same event, and they call themselves Team Jelly.
  4. Their father Petr Korda won the 1998 Australian Open championship in tennis, and their younger brother Sebastian is ranked top 50 in the sport.
  5. In her free time, she enjoys gaming, mostly Call of Duty and Modern Warfare.

5 Things to Know About Joe Kovacs | Shot Put

  1. Joe Kovacs attended Penn State. He graduated in 2011 where he studied Earth and mineral science.
  2. He's bilingual. He speaks fluent English and German.
  3. His mom is a champion in shot put. "Kovacs' mother was a 12 time district champion in high school with shot put, discus and javelin, according to USA Track & Field.
  4. He's a world traveler. Kovacs has traveled to more than 30 countries and has a pilot's license.
  5. He's an advocate for solar energy. Kovacs is an investor in drone technology and solar companies, according to Team USA.

5 Things to Know About JaVale McGee | Basketball

  1. His mother is an Olympic athlete as well. In 1984, Pamela McGee won a gold medal with the U.S. Women's Basketball Team.
  2. His father played basketball too. According to Team USA Basketball, George Montgomery "played collegiately at the University of Illinois and was a second round pick for the Portland Trail Blazers in 1985."
  3. He has played for seven NBA teams: the Washington Wizards, Philadelphia 76ers, Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers and the Denver Nuggets. He reportedly reached a free agent deal with the Phoenix Suns on Aug. 2.
  4. He's involved in music: McGee has produced music under his pseudonym, Pierre. One of his projects was Justin Bieber's song, "Available."
  5. He co-founded the JUGLIFE Foundation. In 2012, McGee cofounded the foundation, JUGLIFE, an orginaztion dedicated to providing clean drinking water for underdeveloped areas. The foundation is "committed to bringing awareness to the lifestyle that drinking water can provide. [They] emphasize the need to appreciate, conserve, and promote water for a successful life," according to the foundation's website.

5 Things to Know About Michael Norman | Track & Field

  1. He's a Trojan! Michael Norman attended the University of Southern California. He was a communications major and won four NCAA titles.
  2. Besides wanting to run professionally, Norman hopes to also become a sports broadcaster.
  3. He could have represented USA or Japan. Norman's mother was born in Japan, while his father was born in the USA. He decided to represent the country he was born in.
  4. He went professional after his sophomore season. Norman went from collegiate champion to professional after his sophomore track and field season at USC.
  5. He's a world record holder. At USC, Norman set the world record for the men's 400m with a time of 44.07.

5 Things to Know About Jenna Prandini | Track & Field

  1. Olympic experience: Tokyo 2020 is Jenna Prandini's second Olympics. She finished 10th in the 200-meter. in Rio.
  2. California born and raised: Prandini was born in Fresno, Calif., and went to high school in Clovis.
  3. A Duck at heart: The Team USA sprinter attended the University of Oregon.
  4. All-American: She is an NCAA champion and eight-time All-American.
  5. Off the track: When she's not running, her hobbies include beach volleyball and cooking.

5 Things to Know About MyKayla Skinner | Gymnastics

  1. She's from Arizona: The gymnast was born in Gilbert, Arizona.
  2. She attends the University of Utah. Skinner studies communications and journalism in school and has collected two NCAA championship titles.
  3. She became a gymnast because of her sisters: Skinner told USA Gymnastics she became a gymnast to be just like her older sisters, Chelsea and Katie.
  4. She started gymnastics when she was 4 years old. The athlete started gymnastics in the year 2000.
  5. She is the oldest member of the U.S. Gymnastics Team. Skinner 24, is three months older than Simone Biles, making her the oldest member of Team USA Gymnastics in Tokyo.

5 Things to Know About Zion Wright | Skateboarding

  1. He started skateboarding at age 4. He told USA Skateboarding he received his first skateboard at 4 years old and entered his first contest at 8.
  2. He credits his dad for his success. "If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be where I am today," he told USA Skateboarding.
  3. He's from Jupiter, Florida. Wright moved to Los Angeles when he was 16 to expand his career.
  4. He went pro when he was 18. The skater went pro in 2017.
  5. He was ranked 16th best skater among Americans. He won the Dew Tour in 2021, ranked 114th in the world and 16th among Americans.
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