When Khoi Young, a gymnast from Bowie, Maryland, was just 13, he told NBC Washington he dreamed of competing in the Olympics one day.
Seven years later and now 20 years old, Young's Olympic dreams may be within reach. He'll know within months whether he'll make it to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
At the Prince George's County facility where his love for gymnastics began, the Stanford University student said he strives for excellence.
"This is something that’s a personal drive for me in all parts of my life: If I’m gonna do something, I want to do it in the best way possible. If I’m gonna do it, I want to be the best at it," he said.
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Video footage shows him swinging on the pommel horse with grace and power – first as a 13-year-old and now at 20.
Young got his start in gymnastics by taking tumbling classes at the Sports and Learning Complex in Prince George’s County. From there, he went on to study at Stanford, where he is a star member of the gymnastics team. Back home in Maryland, the young gymnasts at his gym treat him like a hometown hero.
In his World Gymnastics Championships debut in Belgium this fall, Young dominated. He was the most decorated athlete on the men’s team, winning one bronze and two silver medals, making him the first American man to win three medals at a single world championship. He is also the first American man since 1979 to win multiple individual apparatus medals at a single world championship.
Young was instrumental in breaking new ground for the U.S. men’s team, as they won a spot on the podium for the first time since 2014.
After Young’s success overseas, he has tried to stay humble back home.
“Of course, I came back home to a lot of guys congratulating me and everything. But I really wanted to, you know, take it all in, see what I could learn from the experience and figure out how I could do better in the future,” he said.
The future looks bright for Young, as he has his heart set on the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Kevin and Lucille Young, his parents, say they're amazed to see him move toward his longtime dream.
“It’s been something that he talked about from being a little boy,” Kevin Young said. “The amazing thing is that he’s real-time living his dream. It’s kinda crazy.”
Robert Lundy, Young’s former coach at Sportsplex Gymnastics, said he's confident that Paris is in Young’s future, as long as he stays true to himself.
“Do what you know you can do. Just go out there and be yourself and just kill it like he’s always done,” Lundy said.
Young said his training has given him some memorable advice: “Have a really, really short memory. Like, of course you did great a couple weeks ago. But there’s so much work ahead that you gotta forget about it.”
Khoi’s next challenge is the NCAA Men’s Gymnastics Championships. Then, in June, Young will attend the USA Gymnastics Championship in Minneapolis, followed by the four-day Olympic trials, where Young will find out if he makes the final team.
