Those waffle fries are hard to resist
The road to gymnastics greatness is paved with insanely hard work, plenty of sacrifice, and thousands of hours in the gym, so it's not surprising that even Olympic gold medalists would occasionally think of quitting. But what is surprising is the career path that Gabby Douglas once thought of leaving the sport for: fast food.
Douglas, who snatched the all-around gold medal at the 2012 Beijing Olympics and composes one-fifth of the gold-medal winning team in Rio, is considered one of the world's top gymnasts, but she almost gave it all up to sling fried chicken sandwiches and lemonade at Chick-fil-A.
In her memoir Grace, Gold & Glory — yes, Douglas published a memoir at the ripe old age of 16 — the athlete explained how, seven months before the Beijing Olympics, she considered hanging up her sparkly leotard for good. She wrote in a text message to her mother:
Gymnastics is not my passion anymore . . . I can get a job at Chick-Fil-A in Virginia Beach and live off the 14 grand I just won at World Championships. I just want to be a normal teenage kid.
Now 20, it's doubtful that Douglas will compete in Tokyo come 2020. Considering the stardom that two Olympic appearances and her reality show Douglas Family Gold has propelled her to, it's probably also unlikely that she'll pursue her previous fantasy of slinging chicken sandwiches and lemonade — but perhaps the beloved chain could consider signing her as a spokesperson?
• Gabby Douglas Almost Gave Up Her Olympic Dream for a Job in Fast Food [Daily Caller]
• The U.S. Women's Gymnastics Team Is Already on a Cereal Box [E]
• Gold Medal Gymnast Simone Biles Celebrates With Pepperoni Pizza [E]
• All Olympics Coverage [E]
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