Hezly Rivera is no ordinary high schooler.
Naturally, she is overjoyed.
“I’ve worked so hard to get here … What’s more, her age has received a lot of attention.
As she told theAP, “I definitely love competing with the senior crowd and all the seniors.
So I really love that.”
That party would change her life forever.
By the time she was 8, Hezly Rivera had her eyes set on the Olympics.
The journey toward that dream which came true eight years later was hardly smooth.
As her father Henry Rivera shared onLinkedInin 2022, there were endless hurdles along the way.
Hezly triumphed over them all.
“All the ups and downs, all the injuries she had to overcome.
From that point on, it was triumph after triumph for the junior athlete.
A significant sporting moment took place in Turkey, where she competed at the 2023 Junior World Championships.
She enthused onInstagram, “left antalya, turkey as a 2-time jr. world silver medalist!
i’m so happy and I give all the glory to God for making everything possible.”
Rivera also regularly aced it on the national gymnastics scene.
She scored good numbers on the bars and beam her strongest points coming in at 14.300 and 14.275 respectively.
Not for Hezly Rivera though.
Making the Olympics team was certainly a high-stakes endeavor for the high school junior, but she stayed unfazed.
“I thought of it as every other meet.
“I was just thinking it’s just me and my beam or just me and the bar.
I venture to calm myself down beforehand,” she said.
Rivera’s level-headedness made quite an impression on her seniors, including Alicia Sacramone Quinn.
I was like ‘Thank you,’ but I was very impressed with her demeanor.”
The misstep was likely the result of the vault being a little more slippery than usual.
Nevertheless, it did little to dent her winning spirit.
Rivera emerged from the competition with a silver medal and a few lessons.
“Even the mess-ups, I’m so grateful for those because it makes me a better gymnast.”
True to form, she didn’t lose her poise and counted the event as a major confidence booster.
And Hezly has taken note.
“He has been with me since the beginning and always been supporting me since I was little …
He is my hero, my rock and always pushes me to do my best.
And always comforting when things get rough,” Hezly told NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth.
It’s the biggest joy in the world.”
Her mom was too overcome by emotion to speak.
“Should we teach her how to drive before she gets to Paris?
She’s so young.
She’s so cute.
She’s so smart.
We’re really proud of her for making this team,” she said.
“I think it’s super comforting …
They have been through the journey and the Olympic Games.
I think they will be able to mentor me.
Not just at the Games, but in terms of training,” she told NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth.
