Dominique Dawes
Encyclopedia
Dominique Margaux Dawes is a retired United States
artistic gymnast
. She was 10-year member of the U.S. national gymnastics team, the 1994 U.S. all-around senior National Champion, a three-time Olympian, a World Championships silver medalist and a member of the gold-medal winning "Magnificent Seven"
at the 1996 Summer Olympics
. Dawes is also notable as being the first African-American woman to win an individual Olympic medal in artistic gymnastics, and the first black person of any nationality or gender to win an Olympic gold medal in gymnastics. She is also one of only three female American gymnasts, along with Muriel Grossfeld and Linda Metheny-Mulvihill, to compete in three Olympics and was part of three Olympic medal-winning teams: Barcelona 1992 (bronze), Atlanta 1996 (gold), and Sydney 2000 (bronze). Dawes is the first female gymnast to be a part of three Olympic medal winning teams since Lyudmila Turischeva won gold in Mexico City (1968), Munich (1972), and Montreal (1976), Polina Astakhova
and Larisa Latynina won gold in Melbourne (1956), Rome (1960) and Tokyo (1964), Věra Čáslavská
won silver in Rome (1960), Tokyo (1964) and Mexico City (1968). Since Dawes, Svetlana Khorkina
is the only gymnast to accomplish this feat, winning silver in Atlanta (1996) and Sydney (2000), and bronze in Athens (2004).
She has an older sister, Danielle and a younger brother, Don Jr. She was first introduced to gymnastics at age six, when she signed up for a tumbling class. When she showed up, the class was canceled, and someone suggested to her parents that she try a local gymnastics club called Hill's Angels. Dawes signed up for classes at Hill's and began working with Kelli Hill, who would coach her for her entire career.
to compete in her first international meet, the Konica Grand Prix. By the early 1990s, Dawes was achieving success both nationally and internationally. She placed 3rd in the all-around in the junior division at the 1990 U.S. National Championships.
At the 1992 USA vs. Japan dual meet, the 15-year old Dawes received a standing ovation, after an energetic floor routine in which she revived the back-to-back tumbling revolutionized by Soviet star Oksana Omelianchik
. The judges were equally impressed, and gave her a perfect 10. Though she was not part of the 1991 World Championship team, Dawes continued to move up on the national and international scene throughout 1991 and 1992.
during pre-Olympic training, Dawes performed respectably throughout the competition, even having the boldness to try a brand-new move in her balance beam routine in the team competition--back handspring
to three layout stepouts. She also won over the crowd with a solid optional floor exercise routine and, with a mark of 9.925, tied with Kim Zmeskal
for the highest score for the American team on the event. The team won bronze, and Dawes and teammate Betty Okino
became the first African American females to win an Olympic gymnastics medal.
Dawes only competed in the team competition in 1992, not breaking through as an all-around gymnast until 1993. She is probably best known for her performances at the 1993 and 1994 World Championships. In 1993, Dawes led the competition after three events, even beating her more famous teammate Shannon Miller
. However, she decided to try her harder vault (1½ twisting layout Yurchenko) which was worth a 10.00 instead of simply a full-twisting layout Yurchenko
which had been devalued to a 9.8. She made the first vault, but slipped and fell on the second, immediately bursting into tears. With the new rule that both vaults were averaged in all-around competition, her fall dropped her to 4th overall while Miller won the title. Famously, after the vault fall Dawes's coach Kelli Hill exhorted her to be proud of her performance anyway, stating: "When did you ever think you would be in that position? You have to be happy with yourself. Come on. Be happy. Stand up and wave". Dawes did so, and earned a standing ovation from the crowd. After this disappointment she rebounded in the event finals, winning two silver medals on bars and beam.
The same fate befell her in at the 1994 Worlds
. Leading after three events, she again came to vault with a chance of winning the title. This time her mistake came on the first vault where Dawes over rotated and hurled forward into a somersault. Her low score dropped her to 5th. Her mistakes continued throughout the event finals and left the championships without winning a single medal.
Dawes would finish her year on a positive note, however. She dominated the National Championships, placing first in the all-around and all four event finals at the expense of rival Shannon Miller
. It was the first year since 1969 that a gymnast had swept the competition. She went on to lead the American team to a silver medal at the World Team Championships
in Dortmund
, Germany
, posting the third highest all-around score in the process.
Dawes struggled through a difficult 1995, riddled by wrist and ankle injuries. She finished 4th at Nationals, and was forced to sit out the World Championships that year. At the 1996 World Championships
, Dawes missed out on a medal on the uneven bars, but tied Liu Xuan for a bronze medal on the balance beam. However, she rebounded at the 1996 U.S. National Championships to sweep all four event finals and finished first at the Olympic trials, earning a berth on the 1996 Olympic team at the age of 19.
, dominated the team competition. A key member of the team, Dawes performed without serious error and was the only team member to have all eight of her scores count towards the total. Along with Shannon Miller
, Jaycie Phelps
, Dominique Moceanu
, Amanda Borden
, Amy Chow
and Kerri Strug, Dawes claimed her gold medal as part of the first American team to take the Olympic title. Another first, she became the first black woman of any nationality to win an Olympic gold in gymnastics.
Later in the week, however, Dawes lost yet another opportunity to win a major all-around title. Going into the competition, she was considered one of the heavy favorites to medal. She was ranked sixth overall among all competitors after the team event, and her scores from team optionals were the highest on the American team and the second highest overall. Dawes led the competition after two rotations, with Shannon Miller right behind her. Both gymnasts were on Floor Exercise for the 3rd rotation. Miller had a substantial mistake in her routine, knocking her out of the medals. On the middle tumbling pass of Dawes's floor routine, she under-rotated for fear that she might step out of bounds; she sat down the tumbling pass (and went out of bounds anyway) causing her position to plummet in the standings. NBC cameras zoomed in on Dawes, sitting in tears as her score from floor exercise was announced (it was an even 9.000), which led to numerous boos from the audience. She managed to pull out a decent Vault score, but finished 17th overall. In the Event Finals, she placed sixth on Vault and just out of the medals on Uneven Bars, but redeemed herself by winning Bronze in Floor Exercise finals, her first World Championship or Olympic medal in what had long been considered her best event.
, where she placed 19th in the Mixed Pairs event with Chainey Humphrey. However, she placed 9th all-around at 2000 U.S. Nationals and 7th at the Olympic Trials, and earned a spot on her third Olympic team.
In team preliminaries at the Sydney Olympics, Dominique Dawes posted the second highest score of the American team on uneven bars but the lowest on beam. In the team finals, she performed well on three events and contributed to the team's bronze medal, awarded April 28, 2010 when the International Olympic Committee stripped China of its 2000 team medal for an underage competitor. This third Olympic team medal gives Dawes more Olympic team medals than any other US gymnast in history.
in Silver Spring, Maryland and Gaithersburg High School
in Gaithersburg, Maryland, where she was the 1994 prom queen. She graduated with a Bachelor's degree from the University of Maryland, College Park
in 2002.
Pursuing a career in acting, modeling, and television production, she has appeared in Prince
's music video "Betcha By Golly Wow" and Missy Elliott
's 2006 video "We Run This" in the role of Missy's gymnastics coach. Her flipping ability has been used as the root metaphor in hip-hop songs by such artists as Ras Kass
("It's a Given," "12"), The Hit Squad
("International," "Zero Tolerance"), Janelle Monáe
("Tightrope (Wondamix)" featuring B.o.B.
and Lupe Fiasco
), and Lil Wayne's
Stunt Hard. Dawes also briefly appeared on Broadway in a revival of the musical Grease
, playing cheerleader Patty Simcox.
Dawes served as President of the Women's Sports Federation from 2004–2006; she was the youngest President in the Foundation's history. She was the first spokeswoman for the Girl Scouts of America's "Uniquely Me" self-esteem campaign in 2002. Dawes, whose younger brother is autistic
, has also supported events for autism awareness, such as the 2001 Power of One rally in Washington D.C.. She is presently on the Advisory Board of Sesame Workshop's
"Healthy Habits for Life
" program and also works as a motivational speaker, concentrating on youth issues. In June 2010, President Obama appointed Dawes to be co-chair of the newly renamed President's Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition, along with New Orleans Saints
quarterback Drew Brees
.
She provided commentary for Yahoo's coverage of the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and for the 2010 Winter Olympics
.
On October 28, 2010, Dawes began working for Yahoo Weekend News and CFI
's investigative arm IIG to investigate Power Balance
Bracelets for their claim that they improve balance, flexibility and strength. She states "The fact is, all athletes know that nothing can replace good old-fashioned hard work — practice, practice, practice...Can a silicone wristband with a hologram sticker really give you an added edge?" In the trial four bracelets were taped so no participant knew if the bracelet they were wearing contained the Power Balance hologram. One bracelet was the control with no hologram, another contained only a PEZ
candy. From Wendy Hughes report "The claim was that if the hologram worked, the speed of the participants would increase, and it would show on the graph. But it didn't. Out of 64 heats, 16 participants using 4 bracelets in 4 random heats, the results were almost flat. The main result was that if there was any change, the familiarity with the course caused a slight increase in efficiency. The Pez didn't make a difference either." Dawes's conclusion is that superstition makes the Power Bracelet work.
Her music for floor routines was:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artistic gymnast
Artistic gymnastics
Artistic gymnastics is a discipline of gymnastics where gymnasts perform short routines on different apparatus, with less time for vaulting . The sport is governed by the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique , which designs the Code of Points and regulates all aspects of international elite...
. She was 10-year member of the U.S. national gymnastics team, the 1994 U.S. all-around senior National Champion, a three-time Olympian, a World Championships silver medalist and a member of the gold-medal winning "Magnificent Seven"
Magnificent Seven (Gymnastics)
The Magnificent Seven is the name given to the 1996 United States Olympic Women's Gymnastics Team that won the first ever Gold Medal for the United States in the Women's Team Competition at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics...
at the 1996 Summer Olympics
1996 Summer Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics of Atlanta, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad and unofficially known as the Centennial Olympics, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States....
. Dawes is also notable as being the first African-American woman to win an individual Olympic medal in artistic gymnastics, and the first black person of any nationality or gender to win an Olympic gold medal in gymnastics. She is also one of only three female American gymnasts, along with Muriel Grossfeld and Linda Metheny-Mulvihill, to compete in three Olympics and was part of three Olympic medal-winning teams: Barcelona 1992 (bronze), Atlanta 1996 (gold), and Sydney 2000 (bronze). Dawes is the first female gymnast to be a part of three Olympic medal winning teams since Lyudmila Turischeva won gold in Mexico City (1968), Munich (1972), and Montreal (1976), Polina Astakhova
Polina Astakhova
Polina Astakhova was a Soviet/Ukrainian gymnast who won ten medals at the Summer Olympics, where she participated as a member of the USSR team in 1956, 1960 and 1964.-Biography:Astakhova became interested in artistic gymnastics at age 13,...
and Larisa Latynina won gold in Melbourne (1956), Rome (1960) and Tokyo (1964), Věra Čáslavská
Vera Cáslavská
Věra Čáslavská is a Czech gymnast. Blonde, cheerful and possessing impressive stage presence, she was generally popular with the public and won a total of 22 international titles...
won silver in Rome (1960), Tokyo (1964) and Mexico City (1968). Since Dawes, Svetlana Khorkina
Svetlana Khorkina
Svetlana Vasilyevna Khorkina is a popular Russian gymnast and seven-time Olympic medalist, who is now a deputy at the Russian State Duma. With an unprecedented nine gold, eight silver, and three bronze World Championships medals, she is one of the most successful female gymnasts of her era and has...
is the only gymnast to accomplish this feat, winning silver in Atlanta (1996) and Sydney (2000), and bronze in Athens (2004).
Early life
Dominique Margaux Dawes was born in Silver Spring, Maryland on November 20, 1976 to Don and Loretta Dawes.She has an older sister, Danielle and a younger brother, Don Jr. She was first introduced to gymnastics at age six, when she signed up for a tumbling class. When she showed up, the class was canceled, and someone suggested to her parents that she try a local gymnastics club called Hill's Angels. Dawes signed up for classes at Hill's and began working with Kelli Hill, who would coach her for her entire career.
Junior career
Dawes was competing as a junior elite by the age of 10. She placed 17th in the all-around junior division at her first U.S. National Championships in 1988. In 1989, at the age of 12, she was sent to AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
to compete in her first international meet, the Konica Grand Prix. By the early 1990s, Dawes was achieving success both nationally and internationally. She placed 3rd in the all-around in the junior division at the 1990 U.S. National Championships.
At the 1992 USA vs. Japan dual meet, the 15-year old Dawes received a standing ovation, after an energetic floor routine in which she revived the back-to-back tumbling revolutionized by Soviet star Oksana Omelianchik
Oksana Omelianchik
-Early life and career:Omelianchik was born on January 2, 1970 or December 31, 1969 in Ulan-Ude, USSR). She was originally a figure skater, and participated in her first skating meet at the age of 6. She began gymnastics on the recommendation of her skating choreographer, who believed she had...
. The judges were equally impressed, and gave her a perfect 10. Though she was not part of the 1991 World Championship team, Dawes continued to move up on the national and international scene throughout 1991 and 1992.
1992–1996
The crowd pleasing athlete placed 4th at the 1992 Olympic trials and was awarded a place on the United States Olympic team. Despite battling very painful tendinitis in both ankles and Osgood-Schlatter diseaseOsgood-Schlatter disease
Osgood–Schlatter disease and or syndrome is an irritation of the patellar tendon at the tibial tuberosity....
during pre-Olympic training, Dawes performed respectably throughout the competition, even having the boldness to try a brand-new move in her balance beam routine in the team competition--back handspring
Handspring (gymnastics)
A handspring is an acrobatic move in which a person executes a complete revolution of the body by lunging headfirst from an upright position into a handstand and then pushing off from the floor with the hands so as to leap back to an upright position. Handsprings are performed in various physical...
to three layout stepouts. She also won over the crowd with a solid optional floor exercise routine and, with a mark of 9.925, tied with Kim Zmeskal
Kim Zmeskal
Kimberly Lynn "Kim" Zmeskal Burdette is a retired American gymnast and a former national and world gymnastics champion in the early 1990s.-Early life and training:...
for the highest score for the American team on the event. The team won bronze, and Dawes and teammate Betty Okino
Betty Okino
Elizabeth Anne Okino is an American actress, and former gymnast and Olympic medalist.Born in Africa, Okino moved to the United States with her family and began gymnastics at the relatively late age of 9. By 1988, only four years later, she had progressed to the elite level, placing 17th at that...
became the first African American females to win an Olympic gymnastics medal.
Dawes only competed in the team competition in 1992, not breaking through as an all-around gymnast until 1993. She is probably best known for her performances at the 1993 and 1994 World Championships. In 1993, Dawes led the competition after three events, even beating her more famous teammate Shannon Miller
Shannon Miller
Shannon Lee Miller is a former artistic gymnast from Edmond, Oklahoma. She is the most decorated gymnast in U.S. History, and considered one of the greatest gymnasts the United States has ever produced...
. However, she decided to try her harder vault (1½ twisting layout Yurchenko) which was worth a 10.00 instead of simply a full-twisting layout Yurchenko
Yurchenko (vault)
Yurchenko is the name of both a specific vault and a vault family in artistic gymnastics. The Yurchenko was named after Soviet gymnast Natalia Yurchenko, who originated the vault in the early 1980s....
which had been devalued to a 9.8. She made the first vault, but slipped and fell on the second, immediately bursting into tears. With the new rule that both vaults were averaged in all-around competition, her fall dropped her to 4th overall while Miller won the title. Famously, after the vault fall Dawes's coach Kelli Hill exhorted her to be proud of her performance anyway, stating: "When did you ever think you would be in that position? You have to be happy with yourself. Come on. Be happy. Stand up and wave". Dawes did so, and earned a standing ovation from the crowd. After this disappointment she rebounded in the event finals, winning two silver medals on bars and beam.
The same fate befell her in at the 1994 Worlds
1994 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
The 1994 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships were held in Brisbane, Australia from 19–24 April 1994.Only the all-around and apparatus events were contested at this meet. A team World Championships meet was held in Dortmund, Germany in November 1994...
. Leading after three events, she again came to vault with a chance of winning the title. This time her mistake came on the first vault where Dawes over rotated and hurled forward into a somersault. Her low score dropped her to 5th. Her mistakes continued throughout the event finals and left the championships without winning a single medal.
Dawes would finish her year on a positive note, however. She dominated the National Championships, placing first in the all-around and all four event finals at the expense of rival Shannon Miller
Shannon Miller
Shannon Lee Miller is a former artistic gymnast from Edmond, Oklahoma. She is the most decorated gymnast in U.S. History, and considered one of the greatest gymnasts the United States has ever produced...
. It was the first year since 1969 that a gymnast had swept the competition. She went on to lead the American team to a silver medal at the World Team Championships
1994 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships (Team)
The 1994 World Artistic Gymnastics Team Championships were held in Dortmund, Germany from 15–20 November 1994.Only the team event was contested at this meet. The individual events and all-around were contested at another World Championships in Brisbane, Australia in April 1994. 1994 was the only...
in Dortmund
Dortmund
Dortmund is a city in Germany. It is located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Its population of 585,045 makes it the 7th largest city in Germany and the 34th largest in the European Union....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, posting the third highest all-around score in the process.
Dawes struggled through a difficult 1995, riddled by wrist and ankle injuries. She finished 4th at Nationals, and was forced to sit out the World Championships that year. At the 1996 World Championships
1996 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
The Artistic Gymnastics World Championships were held in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 1996.The team and all around events were not contested at the 1996 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships. The format was similar to that of the 1992 and 2002 Worlds, with medals being awarded for the individual WAG...
, Dawes missed out on a medal on the uneven bars, but tied Liu Xuan for a bronze medal on the balance beam. However, she rebounded at the 1996 U.S. National Championships to sweep all four event finals and finished first at the Olympic trials, earning a berth on the 1996 Olympic team at the age of 19.
1996 Olympics
The team, later nicknamed Magnificent 7Magnificent Seven (Gymnastics)
The Magnificent Seven is the name given to the 1996 United States Olympic Women's Gymnastics Team that won the first ever Gold Medal for the United States in the Women's Team Competition at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics...
, dominated the team competition. A key member of the team, Dawes performed without serious error and was the only team member to have all eight of her scores count towards the total. Along with Shannon Miller
Shannon Miller
Shannon Lee Miller is a former artistic gymnast from Edmond, Oklahoma. She is the most decorated gymnast in U.S. History, and considered one of the greatest gymnasts the United States has ever produced...
, Jaycie Phelps
Jaycie Phelps
Jaycie Lynn Phelps is a United States Olympic gymnast and member of the 1996 Olympic Gold medal U.S. women's gymnastics team, Magnificent 7.-External links:*...
, Dominique Moceanu
Dominique Moceanu
Dominique "Domi" Helena Moceanu is an American gymnast who was a member of the Olympic Gold medal winning 1996 U.S...
, Amanda Borden
Amanda Borden
Amanda Kathleen Borden is a retired American gymnast, who was one of the members of the gold medalist United States team in the 1996 Summer Olympics, the Magnificent 7. Borden was the team captain of the Magnificent Seven, with all six other members submitting her name in the vote, including the...
, Amy Chow
Amy Chow
Amy Yuen Yee Chow is a retired American gymnast and a member of the famous Magnificent 7, the first American team to win Olympic gymnastics gold...
and Kerri Strug, Dawes claimed her gold medal as part of the first American team to take the Olympic title. Another first, she became the first black woman of any nationality to win an Olympic gold in gymnastics.
Later in the week, however, Dawes lost yet another opportunity to win a major all-around title. Going into the competition, she was considered one of the heavy favorites to medal. She was ranked sixth overall among all competitors after the team event, and her scores from team optionals were the highest on the American team and the second highest overall. Dawes led the competition after two rotations, with Shannon Miller right behind her. Both gymnasts were on Floor Exercise for the 3rd rotation. Miller had a substantial mistake in her routine, knocking her out of the medals. On the middle tumbling pass of Dawes's floor routine, she under-rotated for fear that she might step out of bounds; she sat down the tumbling pass (and went out of bounds anyway) causing her position to plummet in the standings. NBC cameras zoomed in on Dawes, sitting in tears as her score from floor exercise was announced (it was an even 9.000), which led to numerous boos from the audience. She managed to pull out a decent Vault score, but finished 17th overall. In the Event Finals, she placed sixth on Vault and just out of the medals on Uneven Bars, but redeemed herself by winning Bronze in Floor Exercise finals, her first World Championship or Olympic medal in what had long been considered her best event.
2000 Olympics
Between 1996 and 1998 Dawes competed in various professional meets but retreated from elite competition. She returned briefly in 1998 to participate in the Goodwill GamesGoodwill Games
The Goodwill Games was an international sports competition, created by Ted Turner in reaction to the political troubles surrounding the Olympic Games of the 1980s...
, where she placed 19th in the Mixed Pairs event with Chainey Humphrey. However, she placed 9th all-around at 2000 U.S. Nationals and 7th at the Olympic Trials, and earned a spot on her third Olympic team.
In team preliminaries at the Sydney Olympics, Dominique Dawes posted the second highest score of the American team on uneven bars but the lowest on beam. In the team finals, she performed well on three events and contributed to the team's bronze medal, awarded April 28, 2010 when the International Olympic Committee stripped China of its 2000 team medal for an underage competitor. This third Olympic team medal gives Dawes more Olympic team medals than any other US gymnast in history.
Education and life after gymnastics
Dawes attended Montgomery Blair High SchoolMontgomery Blair High School
Montgomery Blair High School is a public high school located in unincorporated Silver Spring in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States...
in Silver Spring, Maryland and Gaithersburg High School
Gaithersburg High School
Gaithersburg High School is located in Gaithersburg, Maryland, United States. Part of Montgomery County Public Schools, the school was founded in 1904 as "Gaithersburg School" and offered grades K-12. Since 1951, the school resides at 314 South Frederick Avenue and currently offers education for...
in Gaithersburg, Maryland, where she was the 1994 prom queen. She graduated with a Bachelor's degree from the University of Maryland, College Park
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
in 2002.
Pursuing a career in acting, modeling, and television production, she has appeared in Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
's music video "Betcha By Golly Wow" and Missy Elliott
Missy Elliott
Melissa Arnette "Missy" Elliott , is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, record producer, and actressA five-time Grammy Award winner, Elliott, with record sales of over seven million in the United States, is the only female rapper to have five albums certified platinum by the RIAA, including one...
's 2006 video "We Run This" in the role of Missy's gymnastics coach. Her flipping ability has been used as the root metaphor in hip-hop songs by such artists as Ras Kass
Ras Kass
John Austin IV, better known by his stage name Ras Kass, is an American rapper. He is also a part of hip hop supergroup The HRSMN along with Canibus, Killah Priest, and Kurupt...
("It's a Given," "12"), The Hit Squad
The Hit Squad
The Hit Squad is a low budget pixel art comedy movie due for release in late 2010. It is being written and directed by musician Chris Blundell.-Plot:...
("International," "Zero Tolerance"), Janelle Monáe
Janelle Monáe
Janelle Monáe is an American R&B/soul musician signed to Bad Boy Records and Atlantic Records.Monáe debuted with a conceptual EP, Metropolis: Suite I ...
("Tightrope (Wondamix)" featuring B.o.B.
B.O.B.
B.O.B. is a video game that was released in 1993. It is a side-scrolling game developed by Gray Matter Interactive and Foley Hi-Tech Systems, and published by Electronic Arts. It is both a 2D shooter and a platform game, and is available for both the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega...
and Lupe Fiasco
Lupe Fiasco
Wasalu Muhammad Jaco , better known by his stage name Lupe Fiasco , is an American rapper, record producer, and entrepreneur. As an entrepreneur, Lupe is the CEO of 1st and 15th Entertainment. He rose to fame in 2006 following the success of his critically acclaimed debut album, Lupe Fiasco's Food...
), and Lil Wayne's
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. , better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. At the age of nine, Lil Wayne joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label, and half of the duo, The B.G.'z, with B.G.. In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys, which also included...
Stunt Hard. Dawes also briefly appeared on Broadway in a revival of the musical Grease
Grease (musical)
Grease is a 1971 musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. The musical is named for the 1950s United States working-class youth subculture known as the greasers. The musical, set in 1959 at fictional Rydell High School , follows ten working-class teenagers as they navigate the complexities of love,...
, playing cheerleader Patty Simcox.
Dawes served as President of the Women's Sports Federation from 2004–2006; she was the youngest President in the Foundation's history. She was the first spokeswoman for the Girl Scouts of America's "Uniquely Me" self-esteem campaign in 2002. Dawes, whose younger brother is autistic
Autism
Autism is a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. These signs all begin before a child is three years old. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their...
, has also supported events for autism awareness, such as the 2001 Power of One rally in Washington D.C.. She is presently on the Advisory Board of Sesame Workshop's
Sesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop, formerly known as the Children's Television Workshop , is a Worldwide American non-profit organization behind the production of several educational children's programs that have run on public broadcasting around the world...
"Healthy Habits for Life
Healthy Habits for Life
Healthy Habits for Life is a series of segments and storylines in children's television series Sesame Street. Launched in season 36, the segments are a "multi-year, content-driven initiative to help young children and their caregivers establish an early foundation of healthy habits that can last a...
" program and also works as a motivational speaker, concentrating on youth issues. In June 2010, President Obama appointed Dawes to be co-chair of the newly renamed President's Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition, along with New Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....
quarterback Drew Brees
Drew Brees
Drew Christopher Brees is a quarterback for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League. He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft. He played college football at Purdue....
.
She provided commentary for Yahoo's coverage of the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and for the 2010 Winter Olympics
2010 Winter Olympics
The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...
.
On October 28, 2010, Dawes began working for Yahoo Weekend News and CFI
CFI
CFI may refer to:* CAD Framework Initiative, a standardization organization for CAD systems in the EDA area* Canada Foundation for Innovation* Canal France International* Canonical Format Indicator, a field in the IEEE 802.1Q protocol...
's investigative arm IIG to investigate Power Balance
Power Balance
Power Balance is a brand of hologram bracelet once claimed by its manufacturers and vendors to "use holographic technology" to "resonate with and respond to the natural energy field of the body", and increase sporting ability...
Bracelets for their claim that they improve balance, flexibility and strength. She states "The fact is, all athletes know that nothing can replace good old-fashioned hard work — practice, practice, practice...Can a silicone wristband with a hologram sticker really give you an added edge?" In the trial four bracelets were taped so no participant knew if the bracelet they were wearing contained the Power Balance hologram. One bracelet was the control with no hologram, another contained only a PEZ
PEZ
Pez is the brand name of an Austrian confectionery and the mechanical pocket dispensers for the same...
candy. From Wendy Hughes report "The claim was that if the hologram worked, the speed of the participants would increase, and it would show on the graph. But it didn't. Out of 64 heats, 16 participants using 4 bracelets in 4 random heats, the results were almost flat. The main result was that if there was any change, the familiarity with the course caused a slight increase in efficiency. The Pez didn't make a difference either." Dawes's conclusion is that superstition makes the Power Bracelet work.
Skills
- Vault: 1.5 twisting YurchenkoYurchenko (vault)Yurchenko is the name of both a specific vault and a vault family in artistic gymnastics. The Yurchenko was named after Soviet gymnast Natalia Yurchenko, who originated the vault in the early 1980s....
- Balance Beam: Back-handspring followed by 3 layout stepouts; two back-handsprings to full-in dismount.
- Floor Exercise: Double layout; whip, back handspring, 2.5 twist, punch front (combination); piked full-in back out; double twist-punch front through to double tuck (back-to-back tumbling run). On floor, Dawes was known for her exhausting and technically intricate back-to-back tumbling passes.
Her music for floor routines was:
- 1994: Malagueña by Stanley Black Orchestra
- 1996: Ukrainian Fantasy & Near the Valley by Kovriga Balalaika Orchestra
- 2000: Samba by Armik
Awards
- Inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame, 2009
- Inducted into the USA Olympic Hall of Fame (with the Magnificent Seven), 2008
- AAUW Women of Distinction Award, 2004
- "Caring Hands, Caring Hearts" Award, Ronald McDonald House Charities and Children Around the World, 2003
- Inducted into USA GymnasticsUSA GymnasticsUnited States of America Gymnastics or USAG is the national governing body for gymnastics in the United States. The mission of USA Gymnastics is to encourage participation and the pursuit of excellence in all aspects of gymnastics....
Hall of Fame, 1998 - Essence Award, 1997
- Henry P. Iba Citizen Award, presented annually to two outstanding athletes who have demonstrated good citizenship, 1995
- Sportsperson of the year by USA Gymnastics, 1994
- Finalist for the AAU Sullivan Award, which recognizes the USA's top amateur athlete, 1994