Rewind: Interview with Betty Okino

If you know anything about the history of USA gymnastics, then you surely know about Betty Okino. She was born in Africa, moved to the United States when she was three years old, and raised by parents of Romanian and Ugandan decent. Formerly a competitive dancer, Betty began gymnastics at the age of 9 and was a junior elite just four years later. Before she knew it she was traveling across the country for international competitions and winning medals galore. 1991 was a breakout year for Betty. She won the American Cup and two medals at the World Championships- a silver with the team and a bronze on beam. In 1992 she won another World Championship medal, this time a silver on bars, and was selected to represent the USA at the 1992 Olympic Games. There she helped team USA win the bronze medal, placed 12th in the all around finals, and competed in the beam event finals. Betty is best known for her long balletic lines and being the first women to compete a triple spin on the beam. In our interview, Betty reflects back on some of the high's and low's of her career, training with the Karolyi's, and tells us what she's been up to today.

Photo Credit: Corbis

You started gymnastics at the age of 9, which is late compared to most elite gymnasts. What made you want to do gymnastics and how did you progress so quickly? 
Yes I started gymnastics at the age of 9, yet I began dancing when I was 4. I began competing in National Dance competitions at the age of 5, and to be a contender at the national level, you had to be able to tumble. So I had a jump on your basic run of the mill tumbling skills. As a child, my mom would read to me the book "Nadia," and I became enamored by the sport and the experience of being in the Olympics. I asked my mom regularly to put me in gymnastics. Every time I was interviewed for the paper or on the news for my dance accomplishments, when asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would always say "an Olympic Gymnast." Finally when I sat completely awe inspired as Mary Lou Retton became the USA's first ever Olympic Champion, the deal was sealed. I started gymnastics classes soon after. I had a vision, and my progress in the sport was powered by that vision.

When did the Olympics become a realistic goal for you?
To tell you the absolute truth, the Olympics were always a realistic goal for me, nestled somewhere deep in my heart, and no matter what challenges that idea was faced with, it never wavered. Yet to be super specific, when I first moved to train with Karolyi's, I was put into another elite group headed up by another one of Karolyi's coaches, Rick Newman. Bela and Martha put me there for about 3 months, until the US Classic meet, where I was to be given a chance to prove myself. Long story short, at the beginning of the Classic Rick was my coach, by the end of the competition on the final event, Bela was coaching me and greeting me with his legendary bear hug after landing my dismount. After the competition Martha put her arm around me and said, "well Betty, now are you ready to work?" To which I nodded my head up and down emphatically. Through their eyes I saw my potential, and I had such faith in their ability to coach me to the Olympic Games, that it was made absolutely certain in my mind that day. After all, everything up to that point was unfolding pretty close to how I had visioned. I always knew Bela and Martha would be my coaches, and that they would take me to the Olympics.

What were the Karolyi's like as people and as your coaches? Has your relationship with them changed since the end of your gymnastics career? 
As coaches Bela and Martha were very focused, pretty much all business with few sporadic moments of play, which we savored, making every effort to prolong the moments because it meant a bit of rest. Martha was always very sharp and stern with moments of compassion. Her lighter more endearing side came out when traveling abroad, and most especially when shopping abroad, Martha loves to shop! Bela was always very brute and demanding. He's a man's man, a self proclaimed Romanian John Wayne. He tends his farm, rides his horses, ranches, and hunts, and it was that type of no nonsense, no complaints, no weakness attitude that he governed his athletes with. Bela had a passion for being "the best," anything less was unacceptable and he expected the same from his gymnasts. He does have a lighter side. Occasionally in the middle of practice he would start telling us a story, about his time coaching Nadia and company in Romania, dealing with the Communist Government, playing hand ball in school, or stories about Mary Lou. Story time with Bela was always a good time, he tells a great story, and usually a long one. Story time and news crew filming time were the only times we experienced a slight break in intensity during practice. For Martha, it's shopping. For Bela, he is in his element in nature. He would always come back from hunting trips just a bit softer- a little bit more relaxed. My relationship with Bela and Martha has evolved from controlling coach and somewhat submissive athlete, to a mutual respect and even keeled friendship.

(Top: Betty Okino, Mary Lou Retton, Martha and Bela,
 Bottom: Jennie Thompson, Kim Zmeskal, & Dominique Moceanu)
Photo Credit: Karoyliscamp.com

What were things like in the gym with you being fluent in Romanian, the Karolyi's native language?
Once Bela and Martha learned that I understood Romanian, they stopped speaking Romanian in the gym in front of me, when they didn't want me to know what they were talking about, because I would report back to my teammates whatever they were saying, so they switched to speaking Hungarian.
How did they find out you spoke Romanian?
One day they were discussing what they wanted us to work on during practice. I went back in the line with my teammates after finishing my tumbling run and told them what we would be doing next. So we started to move on to the next thing, when Martha and Bela realized they hadn't yet told us what we were going to be doing next. They stopped us and said, "Bettyson"- that's what Bela called me, you know like 'Karate Kid' Danielson? Anyway, he says, "Bettyson...do you understand Romanian?" to which I said, "yes, of course." That was pretty much the end of Romanian in the gym, when they didn't want us in on the conversation.
With Romania being one of the USA's biggest rivals, did speaking Romanian ever come in handy while traveling?
Speaking Romanian allowed me to form a close connection at that time between the US team and the Romanian team, as I became the go between for us all to communicate and talk about boys, life, training, you know that sort of thing. It was great, we all looked forward to seeing each other at competitions and eliminating the language barrier formed a sort of bridge into their world and visa versa. Knowing several languages always comes in handy while traveling. It helps me to feel comfortable where ever.

What was your relationship like with some of your teammates? Was there a lot of rivalries between you?
My teammates and I were all business in the gym. Out of the gym we were regular teenage girls, having limos sent to take us to see NKOTB in concert, courtesy of our sponsors...yes I said NKOTB. Kim [Zmeskal] loved Jordan Knight and I loved Joey MacIntyre! We were all very focused, given the intensity of our training. Kim and I hung out outside of the gym, when time permitted. We were besties, yet we definitely pushed one another in practice and competition, becoming better athletes in the process, yet there was only love and support between us- no bitterness, as competition is often known to create. I felt a kind of sisterhood with all my teammates.

Photo Credit: Fanpix.net

Talk about a few of the high and low points in your career. 
All the low points in my career were due to injury, and I had the lion's share. I suppose the most challenging time was when I fractured my back 6 weeks before the Olympics. The doorway for doubt in one's self is flung wide open when injuries occur, especially when they seem to occur one after the other. The timing of that injury seemed most unfortunate at the time, yet I was to experience one of my greatest life victories in transcending the doubts and projections of failure from my parents, family, coaches and most of all my own self. A battle waged inside my being in the two months leading up to the Olympics. It was quite literally the battle of good vs. evil. "Will you give power to doubts, fear and failure, or will you hold firm to light of faith, and the vision placed in your heart so many years ago?" I understood that I alone must choose my destiny. I could give up, because that's what most of the people around me were suggesting, or I could hold firm to the light of my dream and in doing so allow myself to be lifted into the victory of the accomplishment. I chose the latter. So It appears that the lowest point in my career, in many ways, was also the highest point in my career.

You competed in the 1992 Olympic Games and won a bronze medal with the team. What was that experience like for you? Do you feel like you accomplished everything you set out to do?
The 1992 Olympics were somewhat bitter sweet. I had won a great personal victory in transcending fear, doubt and injury to dance on the floor at the Games, yet I was not in peak shape. I felt tired and drained by the time we got to Barcelona to compete, and as I have discussed the experience with my Karolyi teammates that were on that Olympic team, they too expressed the same sentiment. Everything was supposed to come together, our energy, our physical health, our routines and our enthusiasm to create one epic, golden moment of awesomeness! I mean, that's how the dream goes, but it wasn't like that. We were battered, bruised, and just surviving the experience, instead of thriving in it. All that said, marching out onto the podium for the first day of competition and feeling the immensity of the crowd, the cameras going off, the over all magnitude of the event...it was big! I am grateful for the experience of representing the USA in the Olympic Games. There is no other event like it, which unites the world and the world's top athletes for 16 days of epic celebration of the limitless human spirit and physical excellence. I am grateful to have stood along side my team, on the medal podium, with an Olympic medal around my neck, and the American flag waving above us...that moment is unforgettable. I am grateful for having met the first ever, legendary Dream Team- one of the highlights of the games. No, I did not accomplish everything I set out to do in the Olympics, yet I now have the wisdom of my experience that has become a powerful tool in my over all life story of victory. I am truly grateful.

You have 2 elements named after you in the code of points, how did those skills come about? 
The triple turn on the balance beam was born out of my love for dance, and my captivation with Mikhail Baryshnikov and his ability to seemingly pirouette forever. I began practicing my pirouettes in order to master them, then decided I could be the Baryshnikov of the gymnastics world by pirouetting on the balance beam. I would practice the triple on my beam at home everyday. I competed it several times as a junior before I moved to Karolyi's to train. Bela and Martha almost always had us play it safe and consistent in competition, but when beam finals of the 1991 World Championships rolled around, Bela knew it might be my last opportunity before the Olympics to perform the trick in a major event, and thus have it named after me. So during beam warm ups in the holding gym, he pulled me to the side and said "let's do the triple." I got on the beam and started warming it up and Martha said, "what are you doing? You're going to do the double...you can win beam for sure, and the triple is inconsistent." I got through warm ups somewhat unsure as to which one of my coaches to listen to, meanwhile they were arguing amongst themselves as to triple or no triple. Bela stood firm, continually whispering in my ear to do the triple. Time was up, it was my turn to mount the podium, Martha looked at me and said to be consistent, "do the double." Bela then walked me to the edge of the podium, and with absolute certainty in his eyes said, "do the triple...you can do it." So I did the triple, kicked my leg out of it just slightly, yet it was the only mistake in an otherwise perfect routine. I got the bronze, just 1/2 a tenth away from the gold, and I got an element named after me, which was one of my ultimate gymnastics goals! Martha wasn't too happy about it, citing that the wobble on the triple cost me the gold, yet Bela was stoked, and I felt good.

              

The "Okino" uneven bar dismount was really out of necessity. I required a more difficult bar dismount. I had been training a double front and double front half out, yet it was hit and miss. I had a really powerful free hip, so we started playing with a dismount that would come out of the free hip. It was brilliant, I learned it in a day, and was putting it in my routine with absolute consistency by the end of the week. Neither Bela or I ever considered that the move was an original, or that it would be named for me.

How would you describe yourself as a gymnast? 
As a gymnast I was statuesque, graceful, consistent and elegant.

What was the best advice you received during your gymnastics career? 
"If you can dream it, you can do it." So simple and so obvious really. From a scientific stand point, we know that the body goes where the mind is. Quite literally, if you can go there in your dreams, vision, or thoughts, then your body will go there in actuality. This simple statement, along with a few bible scriptures, became a sort of mantra for me during my most trying times as an athlete. It helped me believe that my dream would come true. It was given to me on a plaque by our athletic trainer at the Karolyi's, named Leslie Spencer. Leslie encouraged me, stood by me, and believed in me during a time when no one else did. I am incredibly grateful to her.

Overall how would you sum up your gymnastics career? What are some of your greatest memories?
How do we really sum up years of life changing experience? For the sake of this piece I'll say, perfect. Some of my greatest memories are; getting my kip for the first time, Bela and Martha calling me up into their training team, when Nadia first moved to the US and was training with us at Karolyis in preparation for a tour, standing in line with her, taking turns tumbling into the pit...talk about surreal. Scoring my first perfect 10 on vault at the American Cup, which was one of my gymnastics goals, our team USA winning a silver medal in the first ever World Championships held on American soil- it was epic, the thunderous roar of the 60,000 person crowd was so deafening, that every time the US was up on an event, the countries competing floor had to stop the competition until we finished because they couldn't hear their floor music. The many friendships that were formed, many of which are still in effect today, traveling the world as an honored guest, and representing the USA in the Olympic Games. Lastly and perhaps most important, because I apply this today, learning how to vision, apply, apply, apply and then experience the manifestation of those actions, this is the basis of all creation, big and small...and it all started with a kip.

What have you been up to today?
Today I am a beacon of God's Love through the Universal language of Life...this is my purpose. I am blessed in marrying my twin ray Jacob Daniel, and blessed in the unconditional love of our 3 furry babies- Ruby, a female black lab retreiver mix, DeVere a male golden chihuahua, and Izzy, a pretty black kitty... they're so flipping cute. I am also set to co-star in a film called "Hearts of Gold," about two individuals- one a young girl, the other a young woman, finding their purpose in life, while dealing with the challenging circumstances presented them, with gymnastics being the magnet that draws their lives together, and friendship being the bond that sees them through to victory. The film is written by Ty Simpson Jones, and has Louis Gossett Jr. set to star in it as well. The film is currently in pre-production.

In 2013, Jacob and I launched a music website called Fr33domPeople.com, for which we curate the content and manage the day to day operations. I co-host a bi-weekly radio show called The Voice of Fr33dom, which is a two hour show including talk, stitch, artist facts and an eclectic selection of really great indie, acoustic, mid-tempo, light electro and world music. I also produce original music and remix other artists along with Jacob, who is a long time Music Producer, DJ, we go by the name EOTL (emissaries of the light). We see music as a great unifier, and we look to make Fr33dom People a music destination for those seeking something new and different in their music experience. You can visit us at Fr33domPeople.com to check out our new Streaming Radio Channels, original music, and The Voice of Fr33dom radio show.

"Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent. " - Victor Hugo

We (Jacob & I) also recently co-authored a book, called "Yoga Stories," published last summer, 2013. "Yoga Stories" is a collection of personal stories written by individuals the world over, revolving around the practice of Yoga, and how it has helped transform their lives. Yoga is one of the many tools we use in our lives, to maintain optimum health, mental/emotional balance, flexibility and strength, all things that we feel are important in experiencing a harmonious life, at every stage of life. "Yoga Stories" is currently available as an Ebook through Amazon - Kindle and Google Play.

Check out "Yoga Stories" (here)

-We (Jacob and I) are currently working on our first novel, to be completed in 2014. It is a visionary, action, adventure novel, set not too far in the future, in a place called "Punk Jungle." I can't wait to see what happens !

"The visionary starts with a clean sheet of paper, and re-imagines the world. " - Malcolm Gladwell

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