Reflecting On The Past | Carly Patterson

The world first fell in love with Carly Patterson when she emerged onto the elite scene at twelve years old. When she displayed her natural talent and ability to perform well under pressure, she instantly became a fan favorite. By the time she was thirteen she was traveling across the world, competing in international competitions, and impressing the world with her big ticks. It's worth noting that her beam routine as a junior is still considered one of the most difficult routines and would have a 6.3 start value in today's code of points. To put that in perspective, that's higher than the start values of everyone on the current senior national team. In 2003, at just fifteen years of age, Carly started off her senior career with a win at the American Cup. An elbow injury kept her out of her first senior National Championships, but she was back in time for the World Championships where she placed 2nd in the all-around behind Russian Svetlana Khorkina. In addition to her all-around silver, Carly helped team USA win an historic team gold medal and she got her arabian double front beam dismount named after her in the code of points. (Even today, nobody does that dismount quite like Carly did!) As 2004 rolled around, things only got better for Carly. At the American Cup she swept the competition- winning the all-around title and all four events. It was no surprise when she won the National Championships later that year as well! Despite having uncharacteristic falls at the Olympic trials, Carly easily made the Olympic team and was off to Athens as the one to watch. In Athens she contributed to team USA's efforts to secure the silver medal and she became only the second American women to win the Olympic all-around title. (That's 20 years after Mary Lou Retton won her gold medal!) In addition, she also won a silver medal on the beam, moving her Olympic medal haul up to three. Carly left a lasting impression in the gymnastics world and will forever be remembered for her calm composure and consistent routines. After gymnastics, Carly began a singing career and now has her own album titled "Back To The Beginning." Carly currently resides in Allen, Texas with her husband and is attending Texas Womens University. We caught up with Carly to reflect back on her amazing career and see what she is up to today. 

Photo Credit: Carly Patterson's Official Facebook Page

You started gymnastics at the age of 6 and began competing at the elite level by the age of 12. When did you realize that you had the potential to make it far in gymnastics? When did the Olympics become a realistic goal for you?

I knew I was talented in the sport, but it wasn't until 2003 World Championships when our team made history and won the first team gold medal ever and I won the silver medal in the all-around competition. At that point seeing how well I was able to do competing with the best gymnasts showed me I had a shot at the Olympics.

                 

Do you remember what your first trip to the Karolyi Ranch was like? Do you have any funny stories you can share with us?

I definitely remember my first trip to the ranch. I was really excited because I knew it was a big deal. I was also really nervous and just wanted to impress everyone. I don’t know if they still do anything like this, but back then after you made the national team you had to get “initiated”. They blind folded me and the other new members and took us in a dark room and basically scared the crap out of us. I was sworn to secretary so that’s all I can really share! I also accidentally threw a shoe at my teammates head while we were sleeping because she was snoring, I meant to hit her bed or foot so she would turn over but it was dark and I couldn't see. Whoops!

Let's talk a little bit about the 2003 World Championships. What were your expectations going into that event and how did you and the team come together to deal with the loss of your teammates Courtney Kupets, Annia Hatch, and Ashley Postell?

That was a crazy time and competition. Everyone seemed to be going down one by one and I was starting to watch our gold medal team slip away. Luckily we had great alternates on standby that came in and we all did our job. That was a tough competition for me because not a lot of people know, but I had fractured my elbow 6 weeks before and didn't have the proper time off. I ended up landing on it wrong while competing and heard it crack and could barely straighten my arm. I almost gave up my spot to compete, but decided to compete through the pain without knowing what was going on. As soon as I got home I went to the doctor and found out that I had competed on a broken arm and had ligaments that were coming unattached. I went into surgery right away less than a year before the Olympics.

Photo Credit: Kevork Djansezian

What was the year leading up to the Olympic Games like for you? How did you deal with the pressure of being the 'it girl'?

The first thing I focused on was getting my elbow healed so that I wouldn't have any more problems. I listened to everything my doctors and physical therapists told me to do. After 3 months off I was able to start slowly getting back into my skills and routines. My routine in the gym didn’t really change, I just did what my coaches told me to do. Evgeny and Natasha were really good at bringing their gymnasts to their peak position when it mattered most. I feel like I didn’t have to deal with too much pressure, I think falling twice at Olympic Trials diverted a lot of attention off of me and on to Courtney Kupets and Courtney McCool. It ended up being a blessing in disguise and I was able to go back into the gym and get ready for the Olympics without any distractions.

Looking back now, many people disagreed with the decision to air the announcement of the 2004 Olympic team on National Television for the world to see. What are your thoughts on that?

It was the first time they had done something like that and it was so personal. It was heartbreaking enough for the girls that didn't make the team, much less having to go through it with a live camera in your face. Obviously they haven’t done that again since and I think it was one of those trial and error things.

You were really close friends with your teammate Hollie Vise during your gymnastics career. How hard was it when you found out that she didn't make the Olympic team? Are you guys still close friends today?
It was a very bittersweet night for me. I was so excited inside and couldn't believe that I was on the Olympic team, but at the same time I was really sad for Hollie and had to be respectful of her and how she must have been feeling at that time. We went on pretty much every international competition together so it was sad to know that we wouldn't share that experience side by side again. We are still very good friends and talk and see each other whenever we can!

Photo Credit: The Vise family

Talk a little bit about your Olympic experience as a whole. What were some of the highlights and low points if you had any?
I couldn’t have asked for a better Olympic experience. I was so honored to be there and represent the United States and I was just so excited to be competing. We got to stay in the Olympic village, which was really cool and added to my Olympic experience. Just getting to see all of the worlds best athletes everywhere made me even more pumped up to compete and show the world what I had been working so hard for. A low point came during team finals. A couple of us, including myself had some mess-ups and we ended up getting the silver medal. Not that we weren’t happy about that, because we were, but we all knew we were capable of more that night and could have won the gold. Even with that, I had the most amazing time and now have the greatest memories with my teammates and coaches that I will never forget and I can’t wait to tell my kids about some day!

One of the biggest rivalries in gymnastics was between you and Svetlana Khorkina. She won in 2003 and you won in 2004. Can you talk a little bit about what she was like and how that rivalry effected you- if at all?

I knew after 2003 Worlds I would have to step up my game a little bit for the Olympics so I would be able to win against all of the great gymnasts. Svetlana didn’t intimidate or scare me at all. I think having to compete against a 3 time Olympian made me better and even more competitive. I wanted to win against the best in the world and I worked so hard and was able to do that.

Photo Credit: Unknown

How did your life change after winning the Olympic AA gold? 

Things were so crazy after the Olympics for a couple of years. It seemed like I was always on a plane going somewhere. It was a blast getting invited to be on talk shows like Ellen, Jay Leno, Kelly and Regis, VMA’s, etc. I had no clue anyone was even going to care after I won, I thought I was going to go home and keep being normal Carly so all the cool stuff I got to do was icing on the cake for me.

Many girls nowadays opt to keep their NCAA eligibility and compete in college gymnastics. Did you ever consider doing college gymnasts? Can you talk about your decision on turning pro. 
I honestly never really considered doing college gymnastics. My sites were always set on the Olympics and I was so young when I won, I still had two years of high school left. For me it was the right decision to turn pro, but it’s not for everybody. Gymnastics is so competitive and you never know what can happen from one day to the next. I think I would have loved having that family and team atmosphere of college gymnastics. I would have gone to LSU if I had decided to do college gymnastics.

Photo Credit: Carly Patterson

The 2004 Olympics was your last meet as a competitive gymnast. Did you ever contemplate making a comeback or did you know right after the Olympics that you had reached your goal and were done?

I kept training after the Olympics for a little while and didn’t officially retire until I was 18. I thought about trying to keep going, but I was starting to have some back problems with bulging discs that were about to herniate and I was in a lot of pain. My doctor told me it would be smart to retire and be healthy later in life and I was totally okay with doing that.

You pursued singing after your gymnastics career was over. You were a contestant on FOX's Celebrity Duets and eventually released your own album. When did you realize that you were good at singing and how did you go about releasing your own album?

I actually always loved singing and grew up watching my dad sing in church. He was a singer in a band when he was younger too so I definitely got the love for singing from him. I started working with a lot of different people and writing and recording. I eventually signed with a record label for a few years and that’s when I did my CD.

Gymnastics has changed a lot since your time. What do you think about the state of gymnastics today?

“Since my time.” That makes me feel old! Gymnastics always amazes me at how the difficulty level keeps rising every year. I don’t know how some of these skills are possible! I wish they would go back to the old scoring system because its iconic and everybody knows it that way. Maybe someday they will. It’s awesome to see how popular gymnastics has become and I always love watching and cheering on the new talent. 

Finally, what have you been up to today? How do you stay involved with gymnastics?

I am two semesters away from getting my bachelors degree in General Studies/Communications from TWU. It has taken me about 8 years to finally finish so I am so excited to be close to the finish line. I got married a year ago and my husband and I built our first house and got a dog so that has kept us pretty busy. I work with USA Gymnastics promoting our sport and our different competitions throughout the year. I also make appearances and do public speaking throughout the year as well. 

Photo Credit: Dallas News

Thank you Carly! We wish you all the best in the future!