U.S. gymnastics captain takes show on road

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Say this about Aly Raisman: She’s not one to pull down the shades on a window of opportunity.

The shelf life of a gymnast’s career varies, but those who earn Olympic gold often discover ways to extend moments that follow the magazine covers and television commercials and gracing the front of your cereal box.

They don’t fade from the spotlight as quickly.

Raisman is part of the Kellogg’s Tour of Gymnastics Champions that makes a stop Thursday night at the Thomas & Mack Center, where the show’s format pairs elite gymnastics with modern performance art.

In other words, they pretty much push the boundaries of athleticism and execute the sort of jumps and tricks and vaults and flying twists and turns most of the world’s population can’t without risking permanent damage.

"I never expected the response to be like this when we got home from London," Raisman said. "It’s amazing. I knew people would be excited that we won the gold, but it has been beyond what any of us thought."

The truth: Few moments are more celebrated at any Olympics than when the women’s all-around gymnastics champion is crowned, which Gabby Douglas of the United States earned in London.

She was magical and her story one that would interest screenwriters, an athlete who just five months prior wasn’t even assured a spot on the U.S. team who seemingly overnight found herself the darling of a nation.

Raisman’s experience was more a roller coaster of emotion and results.

UP: She was captain of the Fierce Five group that won just the second team gold for American women at the Olympics.

UP and DOWN: In qualifying for the all-around alongside Douglas, Raisman knocked teammate and pre-Olympics favorite Jordyn Wieber out of the competition.

DOWN: Raisman tied for third in all-around but lost the bronze medal on a tiebreaker to Aliya Mustafina of Russia.

UP: Raisman ended her London experience in the apparatus finals by winning a bronze on the balance beam – this time as the beneficiary of the tiebreaker system – and gold on the floor.

"I don’t regret one thing," Raisman said. "I worked so hard for this my whole life – so many days training for seven, eight hours, being exhausted. It’s basically all I have ever known. I love it that much."

She performed her floor routine to "Hava Nagila," the Hebrew folk song that has become a staple for bands to play at Jewish weddings and other religious celebrations. It was then, following her gold-medal performance, when Raisman publicly honored members of the Israeli Olympic delegation who were killed by Palestinian radicals 40 years earlier, an admirable gesture by an 18-year-old who wasn’t alive when the massacre occurred but who showed more respect and class than an International Olympic Committee that refused to properly remember the tragedy.

"I just felt it was important to recognize what happened," Raisman said. "I’m very proud of my heritage. It’s an amazing honor to perform to songs like ‘Hava Nagila’ and to speak with people in the Jewish community. To see how many people come out just to meet and talk with me is overwhelming."

The 2016 Games are in Rio de Janeiro, and it is not lost on Raisman that her first international competition took place in Brazil three years ago. She intends on finishing her career where it began, pursuing more gold four years from now and then deciding how best to fit gymnastics into the rest of her life.

A native of Needham, Mass., Raisman had committed to attend and compete for the University of Florida but decided to turn professional upon returning from London.

DOWN: She can’t compete in college when she eventually chooses which to attend.

UP: She is eligible to earn millions of dollars in sponsorships.

Still, it’s a grind and so incredibly difficult.

Girls become women and bodies change, meaning those vaults and back flips become tougher to execute as years pass. Raisman will be 22 when the Rio Games arrive. Some gymnasts have had great success past 20, but it’s rare. Only two all-around champions have been 20 or older since 1972.

"There is so much pressure that comes with competing," Raisman said. "One wobble can ruin everything. But I want to experience that feeling of performing at the Olympics again in front of huge crowds. There is nothing like it. Brazil is a go for me."

She believes the window still will be open.

She’s not about to pull down the shades.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday on "Gridlock," ESPN 1100 and 98.9 FM. Follow him on Twitter: @edgraney.