What is Kerri Strug doing now? All about the post-retirement life of USA Gymnastics savior from Olympics 1996

Kerri Strug's name is etched in the core memory of every American gymnastics fan. Her heroics at the 1996 Olympics won USA its first team gold in the competition.

Strug retired following the Games that year and then went on to get a sociology degree from Stanford. The 46-year-old has worked in various industries ever since.

After Dominique Moceanu made two unsuccessful landings in the 1996 Olympics, USA's hopes of first-team gold fell on Strug’s shoulders. She failed in her first vault attempt, suffering a severe ankle injury. But with her courage, grit, and a push from coach Bella Karolyi, Strug made a second attempt at the vault. It served its purpose, giving the USA their first team gold. Strug, the hero of the win, was in extreme pain afterward.

Following the Olympics, she retired and joined UCLA as a team manager. Strug later transferred to Stanford University, earning her sociology master's degree. She also worked as a spokesperson for the Special Olympics, and during the 2004 Olympics, she served as a correspondent for Yahoo.

Strug worked in several government positions, with her most recent assignment being in the Department of Justice. The Olympic medalist currently lives in Washington DC with her family: her husband Robert Fischer, a son, and a daughter.

“If I hadn’t gone for that last vault, it always would have haunted me"- Kerri Strug on her second attempt in the 1996 Olympics

Kerri Strug will always be remembered for that second vault attempt in 1996 (IMAGE: GETTY)

Strug’s first attempt yielded a score of 9.2 which was nowhere near enough for the US to win the gold. With two torn ligaments and excruciating pain, she asked her coach Karolyi whether she still needed to go for the second attempt. He replied:

“Kerri, we need you to go one more time. We need one more time for gold. You can do it!... You better do it," Karolyi said.

She went all in a second attempt and landed on her injured ankle, which she pulled up immediately. Years later when Strug opened up on the incident, she stated the moment would have haunted her forever if she hadn't gone for the second vault. She got 9.712 in that attempt, handing her country their first Olympic gold in the team event.

“I just couldn’t walk away. If I hadn’t gone for that last vault, it always would have haunted me. It’s fortunate I came through at that moment. I’m very proud that I was able to accomplish such a big thing at such a young age," she told Dayton Daily in 2023.

Strug was congratulated by Karolyi to the podium as other members of the ‘Magnificent Seven’ cheered her name. She now calls the moment one of the ‘highlights of her life’.