‘Flying Squirrel’ soars into history books

Gabrielle Douglas made history on Thursday by becoming the first African-American to win an individual women's gymnastics gold at the Olympics.

Gabrielle Douglas made history on Thursday by becoming the first African-American to win an individual women's gymnastics gold at the Olympics.

Competing in only her second major international event, the 16-year-old saw off a determined challenge from Russia’s Viktoria Komova to secure the all-round title at London’s North Greenwich Arena. “I think history has been made, it’s fantastic,” said USA team co-ordinator Martha Karolyi, the former coach of Romanian great Nadia Comaneci.

"I'm so happy for Gabby. She's just such a nice girl and so hard-working and dedicated. She proved that by moving away from home just to seek higher quality coaching, and there's everything to admire about her."

The Olympic triumph caps a remarkably swift rise for Douglas, who left her home in Virginia at the age of 14 and moved to Iowa in order to link up with renowned coach Liang Chow.

The graceful teenager struggled at the 2011 World Championships in Tokyo but shot to prominence at the US trials a month ago, when she defeated reigning world champion Jordyn Wieber in the individual all-around event.

"She had the skill and she'd be flying all the time, but sometimes she'd go out of control. We worked very hard with her," said Karolyi, who christened Douglas the 'Flying Squirrel' for her uneven bars routine.

“But it’s pretty unusual. She really charged up and made a fantastic improvement in a short amount of time. I don’t think I’ve seen it before. I don't recall anybody rising from average-good to fantastic so quickly.”

Douglas becomes the first US woman to win multiple gold medals at the Olympics since Shannon Miller at Atlanta in 1996, having already played a part in the Americans' team success on Tuesday. There could be more glory to come as well, with Douglas set to compete in the finals of both the balance beam and the uneven bars.

Twelve years after Dominique Dawes of the United States became the first African-American woman to win an Olympic gymnastics medal, Douglas has broken down another barrier in a sport traditionally dominated by white athletes.