Nastia Liukin

greatest non gymnast that you've ever trained? Like to the point where I don't want to train any other non gymnasts ever again? Wait a Second's not That's not positive at all. Hi, I'm not doing it again. And I am a dog bomb and an Olympic gold medalist. Hello, my friends, and welcome back to another episode of Off the Beat. It's me your host, Brian Baumgartner here. Now you just got a little sneak peek from our conversation today with legendary Olympic gymnast Nastia Lutkin. Nastia has achieved

everything in the world of gymnastics. Literally, She's a four time all around US national champion, a two time world champion on the balance beam, world champion on the uneven bars, and she even made history in the Beijing two thousand eight Olympics, winning five medals, including the all around gold. But more than that, she helped train me on the balance beam. True, well kind of Nastia was good enough to join me on my NBC Sports show Training for

Tahoe back in and give me some personal hints about balance. Anyway, It's been a long time since I saw her thirteen years and uh, I was so excited today to dive back into her incredible journey to the Olympics, starting with her family. Listen, she truly lived the American dream. I'm not gonna lie, guys. I honestly I shed a small tier during this conversation. But gymnastics it's not the only

thing Nastia has mastered. Since retirement, she has become a gymnastics analyst for NBC for the Olympics, she started the Nastia Ludken Cup, and she even competed in Fox's brand new competition series Special Forces. I can't wait for you to get to know Nastia a little bit. She is delightful here. She is one of Gymnastics. No. One of the Olympics all time greats Nastia Ludkin, Bubble and squeak. I love it, Bubble and squeak on bubble and squeaker

cookie every moment left over from the nutty Nastia. Hi, Oh my gosh, it's been a few years. Wow, it has been a few years. I'm so excited to see you again. How are you O? I'm good. How many years? I mean it has been at least I would say between the five and ten mark, Okay, I know the answer. So what's your guest? I do um, okay, so actually it's it's more than ten. You're right, because yeah, that means I'm getting old. No, I looked it up. I was trying to find the clip. I didn't. I just

used Google before. But I will share it with you right now. I will post this to social media at some point. Let's see if you can see that. Oh my gosh, Yes, we were at the gym. There we are in twenty ten, Nasia. I didn't realize you were smack dab off your win and still going for more at that time, obviously wearing your signature pink with me. I was just about to say, some things don't change, like ever ten years older, and I still like didn't wear pink today, but I still I still like pink.

Am I the greatest non gymnast that you've ever trained, Like to the point where I don't want to train any other non gymnasts ever again. Wait a second, that's not positive at all. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. All right, Well, we'll get into that in a little bit. Thank you so much for coming on. I'm gonna take you back a little bit. We're gonna we're gonna learn more about well, at least you, than I did thirty years ago. It

was probably twelve twelve, twelve and a half. So you were born in Russia or the Soviet Union at the time, and you moved right did you move right when the Soviet Union fell? So I was um, I was two and a half years old, so very very young. I don't I don't remember obviously those years growing up there.

But you know, growing up as the only child, and my mom's the only child, and we have a very close, you know, tight knit family, and so growing up we pretty much every summer we would go back to I have four great grandparents up until basically they all forgot to watch me on TV. But when I go when the gold medal, and so that was like really special and so being able to go back and kind of like show them my medals. So yeah, I think we

just it was very normal for me. It was part of who I was and it and it still is obviously, and you know, obviously we haven't been back in a little bit, but two and a half years old, like I grew up here, like you know, for me, English essentially was my first language. For my parents, it was not right. I can speak Russian, but I have like an accent when I speak in Russian as opposed to the opposite. Right, right, right? Why did they Why did

they leave? And let me just say for context for people who don't know, these are high level gymnasts in the Soviet Union, competing obviously celebrated there. Why did they make the decision to come to the United States? First New Orleans and then eventually Dallas make a Marty grab by the way, oh yeah, And they were just like no English, no money, just like an infant, and they had no idea what they were doing. And they were just like, oh god, did we just make the biggest

mistake of our life. Yes, moving to New Orleans a week of Martyr grad that is that is a that is a mistake. But yes, they had no idea. Yeah, and so basically exactly as you said, like they were heroes. My dad won for Olympic medals for some union, and my mom was a rhythmic gymnast and world champion, and and you know, their goal, their next goal was to coach their own athletes to becoming world an Olympic champion gymnasts. They never ever imagine or wanted it to be their

own daughter. But they also you know, they wanted to build their own business and they wanted and that wasn't like that wasn't something you could do then and probably even now, I don't I don't know because like we've not obviously thought about that or even gone down that route in a for thirty years whatever. So that was

part of it. And then the other half of it was to give me the best possible life that they thought that they could possibly give me, and they felt that that was going to be in the United States. Not knowing obviously, you know, they were taking a risk. They were taking a chance, as as every single person does when you move halfway across the world. But again, they had nothing. They literally didn't even have a savings account.

They had pennies. And you know, I think the older I get, the more you realize, like, holy shit, that's what they did, like just not eat, like going to the bank to ask for a loan, like without even

speaking the language. Like you know, like I can't even imagine our process, and like, yes, it's like my parents, So I like, you know, I'm a little bit more biased, but still like when I take when I remove myself from that situation and think like putting myself in that and like going to another country and trying to do that, it's crazy to think that. But they had this dream and and they wanted it so badly, and so you know what I have realized, obviously much later on in life,

my dad and I are the same person. And so it's like, don't you dare tell us we can't do something, because then we will like make sure we do it plus more. And yeah, and I think like they just were so passionate about the sport and they wanted to give back to you know, the next generation into you know, gymnastics is such an interesting sport like you can't once you're done, you're done. Like it's not like you can

like jump in the nothing against any other sport. But it's not like you can jump in the pool and just leisurely you know, like yeah, you're not gonna be going to your Olympic speed. But like gymnastics, you can't just get on the beam and do your Olympic beam routine like ever again. And so this knowledge essentially is built, you know, for over twenty years, and then it's like then what do you do with it? You know, if

you can't carry that on? So yeah, that was kind of like that was their purpose, I guess, um, and I'd like to think they did a pretty darn good job. And so to be clear, their dream was to open a world class gymnastics club and to train future Olympic gymnasts. Was there and this I apolologize, this is like naive or kind of a stupid question potentially, But were they

able to leave because the wall went down? We actually, yeah, we we still have dual citizenship, and um, like it was like not like no, we did not escape, We did not flee, like and that's why I think like we went back every summer up until I was started like competing on the national team, and then my competition season was in the summer, and then winter there's miserable. So it was kind of like, okay, maybe our family can come visit us. Um uh so yeah, that's kind

of what we did. But it was never hard feelings or we were always accepted back. Like one of my favorite stories is actually from the Olympics, and we were in the rotation in the all around finals with you know, with the Russian gymnast and her coaches, and obviously we've known them, you know for years and years and years, and I believe, um, if my stats are correct, but I believe this was like the first time in history that you know, the USSR or Russia did not win

a medal in like gymnastics at the Olympics. And so when I won, I remember like them coming up to me and saying like you might be wearing a differently it's hard and a different flag, but like we're still like proud and you want for us, And I was like thanks, because I just want to keep peace with everybody.

But I have, like, you know, a different red, white and blue one right now, right, right, right, that's fascinating because I you know, I remember the stories of gymnasts having to flee and be you know, escape in the middle of the night on a boat. Yeah, right, to get out. But that's interesting that at that point you left, but that they welcomed you back and had positive things to say to you. That's that's very cool. Yeah. Apparently your dad joked that the reason he marriage your mom

was to create the perfect gymnast. Oh my god, that's um. First of all, like talking about my parents like that weird, but also it's funny because he was obviously into her, and my mom was like absolutely not. My mom's taller than my dad, and so she was just like no, are you kidding? Like, but they all trained together, like at the centralized training you know center um outside of Moscow, and ended up being my dad's now business partner who

was like my second dad. He was very close to my mom, like as friends, and so he kind of like made it happen, which is like makes perfect sense because you know, now we're just like literally family. Like I've known him since the day I was born, and he actually coached in two thousands. Four are one of my teammates Carly Patterson. He coached her to win gold. So so it's like it was a really cool like moment.

I guess you could say of like, you know, we we went to New Orleans altogether and then you know, they literally lived the American dream, like that was what they dreamed about doing, was coming to this country and the people gave them, slash us this incredible opportunity. And not to speak on behalf of them, but I know, you know, we all feel this way. But it's like when you sit down and you take a moment and

you think and like this is really cool. They moved to a country and they didn't speak a language, and they were not guaranteed anything. They were not guaranteed success. Like they built Fish Jim. It was a grocery store. They literally built it with their own hands because they didn't have money and couldn't at the time, couldn't afford any employees or you know, any construction worker or anything. So I think, like that to me is like I always take myself back to that because it's like nothing

real at the core is handed to you. You have to work your butt off. And yeah they did. Ye. I mean I joked that they wanted to create the perfect gymnast, but allegedly they really they wanted to train Olympic gymnast, but but not not me, not you. So why not you? First off, why not you? They didn't

want that for you. Two things, the pressure like I'm the only child and your mom is a rhythmic world champion gymnast, your dad is an Olympic and like you're doing it, so it's like you better win or else, you know, I never felt I never felt that way ever, Like I literally thought it was the coolest thing in the world that my parents did what I wanted to do.

I wanted to grow up to be just like them, And so for me it was more like, Wow, I have like the biggest greatest mentors right in front of me, and not only do I you know, can I talk to them, can I ask some questions whatever, But they're also guiding me and coaching me to that you know, if if I want that, that's what they would do. And then I think the other thing was just as the only child, they wanted you want everything to be easy and perfect and for them to be happy, Like

that's what they wanted for me. But they also really really instilled like the importance of finding something that you're passionate about and finding something that you love. And for me right away that was domestics. And they were like really like you godn't find something else. And my mom was My mom tried so hard. She took me to piano lessons every week and I would try every single time and I was like, I'm not going back, and yeah,

it was just not for me. And you know, it was always like a mutual understanding that we're going to help you the best way that we can if that's what you want, Like we we already did it. We don't want this, you know, like we don't need it for ourselves, like this is for you. So I know it's hard for people to like grasp and understand that, especially like you know, we see them all the time, but stage parents or whatever you want to and yeah, they were the complete opposite. Well, this to me kind

of proves it. You started with other coaches, right and not them, And now was this because they were trying to let you go your own path to start to find out if they were trying to push me away, like they were just like trying to turn their head a little bit in the gym and like pretend I wasn't you know, I wasn't good because obviously I also had some good genes and a god given talent. And they immediately kind of said, well, we can't take that

away from her, like that wouldn't be fair. So they were like, okay, just like go have fun, go play, like go to your classes or whatever. And I was there all day unless I was like at school, and so I would start just trying to copy and mimic the older girl like what my parents were teaching them. And they noticed on the side I was doing it better myself without a coach like then, like and they were just like, okay, we have no choice. And what happened was and this is like such a fluke mistake.

I slipped, like my hand on the bar with a different coach who by the way, still with us, you know, still at the gym, like like I love him so much, but I got a black eye because like I like hit my my base on the bar. And my dad

had nothing to do with him. It was more a dad, you know, the dad instinct coming out, and he said that's it, Like, if you're going to do gymnastics, I'm going to be your coach only because not because I know better or I am better, but because I want like your safety in the sense like to be in my control, you know. Yeah, And that was it, like literally, and I was like okay, like I mean, I was, I don't know, gosh, like eight nine years eight nine

years old, you know. And also it was to spend more time together, to be completely honest, I was going to public school. They were working twelve fourteen hour days at the time I was going to sleep. My dad was still at the gym, you know, wrapping things up, And so it became our bonding kind of like moment. And to achieve like your lifelong dream at the time, lifelong with one of your best friends essentially, like I literally wanted to be just like him. I idolized him.

I respect Like, yes, my teenager years were you know, a little little little tough when when you have two stubborn perfectionist I guess you could say, but I don't regret a single moment, like deep down, it was you know, at the end of the day. And he says this still to his athletes. Now, gymnastics is such a short portion of your life. You have the rest of your life to live, taking care of your body and safety

and all of that. He says, I don't want you to be, you know, feeling like you can't even like God willing you have kids. One day you can't go play with your kids because this hurts or that hurts. And and it was the same with education. You know, he just instilled the importance of getting a degree. And you know, you never know how far your gymnastics will take you about an education will stick with you for the rest of your life. So it was the life lessons I think too that he taught me. But also

the sport as well. I have said many times as I know that you know, I'm a big sports fan and have had the opportunity to attend a lot of events. Football is my love. Baseball, basketball, hockey my greatest sports. And I'm bringing it up now because this is about in the timeline that we're talking that I ever witnessed was. I'm from Atlanta and I saw the Olympics in nine and was sitting right at the end of the vault when Carrie Struggle. I was there. I was there. I

watched it. I saw her ankle. It looked like snap into I felt the crowd everyone saw it was the craziest thing I've ever seen. And then yeah, and then to see her her landed. Now at this point you're obviously younger, but you're watching it your fowing. That was the first Olympics for me that I was glued to the TV every night, Like I remember being like I want to do that, you know, like look how cool

that looks. They're walking into Georgia Dome and and you know the little American flags every like people are chanting USA. And that was for some reason, like I still get kind of like goose bumps now thinking about it, because it was you could feel it, and maybe I didn't. I don't think I necessarily understood it then. I mean I was seven years old, but you almost feel everything has come to that moment, your whole your whole entire life.

That's right that it feels like that way in gymnastics, right like because it's so next year, you don't get it next year, you know. And again nothing against I have so much respect for all athletes, all sports, but it's like you didn't make the super Bowl. Try again, you know, and again nothing nothing against it, but it I remember standing in front of the beam the all around finals at the Olympics, four inches wide, looking down

the beam, looking to my right, seeing my dad. And he always does the same thing when he's like super nervous. He like does this with the shirt like for no reason. That's like his like nervous kind of like tick and yeah. And I was just like, okay, well, everything is normal. He's doing that, Like I'm like, the beam is still four inches wide. And I kind of did for a split second what like everyone says, like not to do. But in my head, I remember thinking, literally, this is

a once in a lifetime opportunity. You are never going to be halfway through the all around finals in the lead, going to win, like your life could change forever if you just don't fall off. And and then I was like, oh god, oh god, oh god. I'm like, snap out of it, snap out of it. And you consciously thought yes, and again I know that, and I I literally anytime anyone asks for advice or a little kids, I'm like, Okay,

don't think what you don't like want to happen. You have to think what you you know you're gonna stay on me if you're gonna say you're smell and here I am like in that moment, I remember, and and no matter what, like no matter where you looked, because what I try to do was treated like any other competition, even though it's not like it's a once in a life. But those five Olympic rings are everywhere, like the toilet,

the chalk bucket, you know, it's everything. So I would be like, oh, look there, maybe like you'll forget that you're at the Olympic Game. And it was impossible and and I think, to be completely honest, obviously the physical training my dad was, it was truly a master mind planner. He planned sixty five days so back backtrack basically, so August fifteen I won, So three sixty five days up until that moment to peak and have the best day of my life on that day. That wasn't luck, That

wasn't by chance. That was all you know, It was all planned. And I think physically I knew I was the most repaired I had ever been in my entire life. But it and and so was everybody else, And so it is now a mental game. It is who can now do you know? What? I what I almost like leaned into, but I caught myself, and I was like, no, no, no, no,

but yeah, it truly is. Mentally it's four inches wide the way of your in higher country and nation, let alone your teammates and your family and all that your country is on your shoulders. Like the pressure. It's so dangerous too. It's so dangerous. And honestly, as my dad was so happy when I was done, just so happy, like he just wants to, you know, have a very normal life. And they came over last night and played with the dog like it's just you know, we will

always have that. But I think we're very grateful that that's behind us, because it truly is, you know, it is extremely dangerous. And that is why he wanted to coach me. Was you know, safety at age nine, you win the whatever, this the level six Texas state championships. Now, at what point, for real, at what age are you like, I am gonna be a world class gymnast? I mean,

are you talking six? Are you talking eight? Are you talking so like seriously or like what I thought most I don't know that two very different things, like I think in that moment, I was like, oh my gosh, like this is what it feels like to win I want to win bigger and better things. And so that was a and I felt on top of the world. Right when you're winning the state Texas championships, Yeah, you feel like you just won the Olympics. And I never

I never did it to win. But obviously, you know, as any human, like when you spend any amount of time doing something and you know pays off, like you enjoy you know, you enjoy winning the award, the trophy, the medal, whatever it is. And I think that was the moment where I things kind of just like flipped in my head where I thought, Okay, maybe I can be good and meanwhile I was like ten years away from even remotely being right. Okay, right, but you the

moment that you started seriously training is age what? So is it before that? Is it before winning or is it still after that fifth grade? Aren't you? Like? Okay? So I think it was. I think it was right after that, which it also had nothing, It didn't really have anything to do with that. It was after that level.

It's like, I don't want to get too technical, but after that level, basically the next level is like a big step up essentially, and so it's like you have to you just have to spend you know, more time in the gym. And so that's when I started training seven hours a day, six days a week, seven hours a day, six days a week. Fifth grade and you're still going to school, yes, so I yeah, I went

to public school up until that moment. And unfortunately my school that I was going to, they did not excuse absences for gymnastics competitions or you know anything like it would be you playing hookeey is the same thing as you going to the World Championships and you know, competing

for your country. So it was just not ago. So yeah, I started going to a private school and we would train eight to twelve in the morning, go to school twelve thirty or three thirty, and then train again four to seven, and then go home, shower, eat in her homework, do it all over again. Unreal. You make the junior national team. What age is this now? Twelve? Oh dear lord? So this is yeah right, yeah, so that makes sense.

So you have like a couple of years where this goes and then you make the national the junior national team, right, But like the level of gymnastics from level six to love to like making the national team is like significantly, just normally you don't do that in a few years. Basically, I didn't think that was I didn't know what was normal. I just try this, try, and you know, when you're young,

you're so fearless. Nothing nothing phased me. If my dad told me to do something, I trusted him as my coach, but even more so as my had and so I knew he would never tell me to do something if he knew I couldn't do it, or you know, he would always spot us or whatever. But it was like a very Taylor Swift fearless moment, like but like a whole a whole decade of it. Just like then all of a sudden, you get older and you're just like,

oh my god, I could literally die like this. It's dangerous. Yeah, I feel that way watching anything like going back, and I'm thinking, why did I think that that was like fun and safe? I mean it was, but now being older, thinking what it would take for me to do some of those things, it's just yeah, right in two thousand four, this is four years before you compete. You're just a little too young to compete at the Athens Olympics in

two thousand four, but you mentioned her before. Carly Patterson, who also trained with at the gym with with your family, went on to claim the all around title four years before. How was that for you? Was it hard to watch and not be doing it at that point yourself? Like? Was that difficult? Or was that inspiring? Or was that? Did that help prepare you for four years later? What was that experience? Like? That moment for me made me like fully believed that I could do it, because okay,

that makes sense. It was before Carly, it was merely written. It had been twenty years since an American gymnast had won the all around gold medal at the Olympics, and so it was kind of like, oh, the Americans will never you know, they're never gonna win again basically, and Carly really put the US back on the map like since since then essentially, And I remember it just made it feel real. It made it feel possible. Somebody that you train literally right next to, you know, our lockers

were next to each other. Like it just felt like, if she can do it, then I can do it too. Four years later. It was never difficult for me because I'm just had I come. I was not ready, you know, I was not physically ready, I was not mentally ready. I was like, I was still so young in two thousand and eight, but I was not mature enough to

you know, even understand or handle the pressure. Then. Yes, I had competed and you know, done well up until then, but the Olympics is, as I said, like the the amount of pressure and the expectations and the stress and all of that, and I think, Okay, maybe I would have gone and been part of the team. And I don't know. I'm such a firm believer and everything happens for a reason, and I just that moment watching her, I just remember thinking, you just have four years and

then again, like anything could happen. You know, you can row your ankle at the Olympic village, and that has happened to athletes, and they're already at the Olympic. Like you're not guaranteed a spot obviously, But I do have to say after she won, we have probably like eight high like beams across. I definitely switched over to like start training on the beam that she always trained on because I was like, this, oh yeah, for sure. I was like, this is for sure going to be like lucky.

And there it worked. Right. No one has ever said this before, including yourself, But I feel like between two thousand and four and two thousand and eight, really the key to your maturation, the key to the secret sauce that enabled you to win, was you spend little time at my alma mater SMU. Hail to the Red and the Blue. I mean, how how much did that? Literally, you have an SMU cup over there with my water in it. I've got something somewhere too. Oh my god.

So my boyfriend actually went to business school there. Really, yeah, how much time do you spend? How much time do you there? It is not much, not not enough to have This is not mine, this is my boyfriend's. But it gave you some maturity. I think it really helped season you. It gave you a well rounded nous, a posture, a poise. So it's so funny because growing up in Dallas, like I've only applied to one school, only applied to s m U. When I got in, I was like, okay,

let's go, like I'm never leaving Dallas. And it's funny because I've been back since and I you know, did a speech, and have you been back many times? I wish I could have graduated from there. It wasn't the right place that I'm sorry. It was the right place, it was not the right time. The right time. Yes, you leave to begin preparing and you mentioned anything can happen. In two thousands six, you have an ankle entry. Were you afraid that that was going to derail your chances? Um?

I wasn't until all the sudden because in my mind I thought so I showed up to the World Championships in a wheelchair. I couldn't walk because I was still put on the team. Um My incredible doctor here, Dr Coburn Dallas, we called him, sent him all like the scans and he was just like, it's the bone chip. You know, I'm gonna have to operate on it when you get back. It's you're not going to damage it.

More So I went in a wheelchair just in one event and then and it was just the record, like I am not a patient person, you know, rushing the process. And so this injury now lingered into you know, a whole year. So the year before the Olympics, when you're really supposed to be, you know, gearing up to being the best. I had the worst competien season in my entire life. You know, at our national championships we have eight eight four events. Twice out of eight routines, I

fell six times. And it's like, and you think you're gonna make the Olympic team and win a gold medal. Like I understand fully why everyone was writing me off, but at the same time it that was the first time in my life, I think, in career where I actually started, you know, listening to people that I didn't know or that didn't matter, that weren't in the gym, and they started influencing how I felt and how I was trying. Like I was so up in arms thinking that all of a sudden I was the favorite and

everyone loved me. And you have, you know, one bad season and now you're too old at eighteen, you're two injured. You know, there's girls that are just better than you, younger than you, stronger than you, quicker than you, all of these things, and that I think that was the moment where I quickly learned to like horse in a horse you know, in a horse race, like put the blinders on, block out the noise, and those people don't matter. Yeah, good for you, you make the team. How did that

feel making past the trials. Well, we technically were named Sean and I, but we weren't really. It was for TV. Essentially, we still had to go do a second trials, not on TV, and at a training camp, and you know, we had to show complete readiness and the four other girls were named to the team, and we could have if we showed up not prepared or not ready, we could have been removed. So honestly, it was kind of

put a check by it. Move on. Also, and I didn't know this, but you're not technically an Olympian until you step foot on the competition floor at the Olympic Games and compete for the first time, which makes sense, makes total sense. But in the moment, you know, we've never been, we don't know, and so you kind of feel like your dream of becoming Olympian has come true and it's like no, no, no no, you're still like two months away. But no, it was definitely the Olympic Trials.

We're ten times more nerve wracking, more pressure filled. It was worse than the Olympics. It was do you have one bad competition and that's it, like your whole life, and once you get to the Olympics, you're you don't want to mess up, obviously, but there's a sense of taking a deep breath of okay, I'm at least on the plane, like I'm I'm on my way to Beijing,

you know. And yeah, I think it was just being able to now be there together, not having to compete against you know, each other for spots, and that it was it was hard being a teenage girl and you're competing against your friend. It was it was hard. You have said that the morning of the meet you woke up and you knew you were going to ruin. What what was it within you that gave you that? So, I mean a few things. I gets us. I read a book The Secret, and I'm big on it's so cliche,

but thinking positive. But to a whole different level, or like a much deeper level, I guess. And I think it was a combination of that. With My dad sat me down with a piece of like literally like a teared up piece of paper in his office at the gym in the middle of practice a few months before Olympic trials and said like, come in here real quick.

I just want to show you something. And he said, you know, calculated all my scores four scores and he said, you've gotten these scores before, right, And I was just like, yeah, I've gotten better. And he was like, that's my point. You don't even have to. I'm just trying to show you you're just normal, not the most amazing. You know, four performances of your entire life, but if you can just have four solid routines, there is no way that

you will not win. And when he said that, I was like, oh what really, I just had never ever taken and and yes, of course gymnastics is subjective and you could get a judge that whatever. But if all is fair, you know, and everything is whatever you compare the scores and it's math. And so when he said that, there was a ginormous shift of Okay, now, don't worry about anybody else, keep training day by day, like taking whatever,

and just go and enjoy the experience and interest. Laying on your feet, you were doing one more of the same exact being routines that you have probably done well over three thousand times at this point. One just one. So what you stressed out about that? Just I love that you said just land on your feet, although what you're talking that's hard to do. She's like, oh, you just go on, just on your do the hardest thing

that you can do. But just do that and you're fine. No, honestly, that is that is genius, Like that is genius coaching right there, because that I mean, of course it makes total sense. But what it does is it doesn't. What it says to you is you don't have to be You don't have to be anything that you are extraordinary. You are extraor' you're extraordinary already, but you don't have to add some other extraordinariness on top of it to make it better. Every day self, nothing better, nothing worse.

Just be you. Yeah, one of the greatest that's ever done it, but just to be that. But don't you don't have to be any better than that. No, I'm saying I'm making joke, but I'm serious, Like that's genius. I think it truly. It was that moment that I was then just like on cruise control. But I have to say, for the first time in my entire life, so I had this dream the night before the competition, and I never dreamed about gymnastics, which is weird because

you're doing it seven hours a day. But I had the dream as if it was the all around finals and I was in my pink leotard. I was going through each of my events and I stuck my vault landing and that was first, and I knew it was a dream because I that never happens. And I went on to bars, took a step on my landing. This

is all my dream. Stuck my beam, dissmount, finished my Florentine, and I'm coming down the steps, you know, off of the podium, and my dad's right there, and I like, go give him a hug to celebrate that I had won. And I literally wake up like this, like my hands

in the air, air the air. And then I'm like and I look next to me and Sean and I roommates and she has sound asleep, and I'm like, I've never had a dream in my entire life that felt so real and so as hard as it was to fall back asleep for a few hours, when I woke up, it was like, oh cool, Okay, got it, Okay, go to your hair or go get breakfast. Like I was just kind of just going through the motions, not in a negative way, but I knew it was like I

knew what was gonna happen. And the funniest part, and that this is when I really knew it was going to happen, was in the warm ups for our first event on vault. I landed on my feet and I took one step on my landing and my dad said, good, good, do the exact same thing. Just try to stick it. And I started laughing, and I think, like, for a moment, he's kind of like, work, okay, this thing of Olympics. Let's just be a little serious, like what is so funny?

And I then kind of snap back into it because I almost said like, yeah, I know I am going to because that is like I already like I dream that. And as soon and and I stuck it a few minutes later, and as soon as that moment happened, I was like, okay, to the point where my dad I I every time I compete, I get so nervous, like I feel like I'm gonna throw up. I would tell my dad every time, like, oh my god, I'm so naious, I'm gonna throw up. And he's like he's like, it's okay,

You're you're fine, You're not going to throw up. And I'm like, I feel like I am this time and like again, he's dealt with this for you know, twenty plus years now at this point, and for the first time in my life, I did not feel like I was going to throw up. I was I would just sit, like literally sit in the chair like this and just watch all my competitors, and my dad will come up

to me and say, um, are you good. I think you should maybe get up and like stretch like you know, And I was like, oh, okay, whatever, like whatever you say, you know, Like I was just so like z and that is the first and last time I've ever experienced anything like that. And then going down the stairs, gave my dad a hug and I was like, oh, yeah, this's bill familiar. Gonna make sure I like stay there

for a few extra seconds. But it was a moment of knowing that you truly, like the mind and the body obviously when they're in sync, like it's such a powerful thing, and you truly can do what you want to do, no matter what anyone tells you. You mentioned your dad, it's your dream. It's also his dream. He leaves the Soviet Union with nothing, comes here to build this gym, to train a gymnast, and I mean, it makes me slightly emotional to even say it. But now

it's happened, and it's happened with his daughter. What is that moment? Have you guys talked? What was that moment for him? And for your mom too? But so my mom was not My mom was in Beijing, but she was not in the arena. She gets too nervous. I tried to call her to tell her that I had just won the Olympic Games with like five cameras in my face. She didn't answer, so I texted her and we still like the screenshot somewhere, but it's all I said,

because they were like rushing me. And I said, because this is what she always said, I don't care. I love you. I don't care how what the placement is. I just want to let me know if like it's done, you're safe whatever. So I said, Hi, Mom, carried, I won period, I love you. And then my dad finally got ahold of her and she like rushed over and I believe made it back in time for the word ceremony. So for my dad, this is the first time in my entire life that I had ever seen him cry

all the way across the arena. Like all the way across, and I just felt my whole life I wanted to be like him. I wanted to make him proud. I want Yes, I did it for myself, but seeing him with tears in his eyes, that's why I started crying. Yes, I was so proud, and you know, thinking about all those moments that I had to you know, the obstacles, everything that I had to go through to get to that moment. But it was him. It was exactly twenty years to that day when he competed in the all around.

FI knows he got the silver medal by oh one. Twenty years later, he has daught you know, it was and I knew that, like I knew this this whole time, And that's what he always says. For twenty years. Don't get me wrong, winning a silver at the Olympics is amazing, but silver in fourth place are the hardest to swallow because it's just like and not to mention when you're like literally like a pinky toe nail, like clothes, like you can't even So for twenty years, he's lived with

that in the back of his mind. You know, not every day obviously, you move on, but it's you know, every Olympics comes and you're just like and we'd always joke and I'm like, well you still got two gold medals, It's okay, and he was just like, you know, we we just start perfectionist obviously, but seeing him in that moment, you know, him saying, you're in a limp, big champion, and that was always a title that he had that I also wanted because he had it, you know, just

I wanted to be like him, So it was it was a very special moment. And to share that the first person that I saw, you know, waiting for the scores, Like you can't replicate those moments, you know, It's it's been gosh, however many over ten years obviously, thirteen four whatever, and I can still bring myself back to that, and I don't do it often, but I can still bring myself back to that moment and that feeling and even you know him look like we look at each other

when my my score comes up. But then there's still another competitor to go, so it's not the final standings, but we know that it's not possible that you know, somebody else would you know, bump me. And it was just this like there's this moment of just us looking at each other and he I can already see he's like trying not to cry. And I was like, no, no, it's not it's not the final thing, like in my mind of like, it's not Otober, but yeah, it was.

It was really a special, special moment that also just makes you realize you really can't do anything that you set your mind to, like put your horse blinders on and keep chugging along. Five time Olympic medalist, voted Sportswoman of the Year in two thousand and eight by the US Olympic Committee, the International Gymnastics Federation Athlete of the Year. You're also on a wheaties box. Now do you have

the wheaties box? Oh? My god. That is so. I literally was up until like two o'clock, three o'clock in the morning in this my studio room, and there was a pile of like random clothes and stuff, and I started hanging and under it was a flat lag wheaties box. And it's literally right there. And I was like, if somebody were to walk in or see this, they'd be like, I want to see it right now. It's right next to you. I mean, it's kind of sad honestly, because what is what is it? Oh? Wait, it's a flat

Oh it's it's a flat box. Do you have a full box of wheaties somewhere? I don't know. You just have the You just have the thing. You haven't framed it. What are you doing? Okay, So again there's a reason because but also this is sad. It's just kind of like on the floor like it's good. No, I'm just kidding. I can I tell you something. This is not a joke. And I, by the way, I don't have a wheaties box, but I have. I just moved, so I can tell

you this. I have things like that, not wheaties boxes. No, I'm not saying are the same. But yeah, just like you know, my key to the city from Scranton from blah blah blah. It's I mean, like, why is it that frame? I love it? It's the coolest thing ever. Why is it still? Like yeah, And I'm looking around because it's somewhere right around here, not on my wall, so you know what. I've thought that too, And I I don't know if my parents did this on purpose.

I have yet to ask them, which like every time I like say this, I mean to ask them and I forget. But growing up, I never saw a single one of their medals, a single one of anything. If you walk into our home here where I essentially grew up my teenagers, you would never know who lived there. Yeah, you would see like a few photos, you know, by the fireplace, family photos. There is not one Olympic metal

want to like nothing, and I don't. Again, I don't don't know if this was on purpose, but for me, that was the greatest thing that they could have done. It was not in my face every day. And when people are like, how did you not feel the pressure, and I'm like, because I grew up like that. And you know, my dad's medals were in a ball, like literally the ribbons all tingle like in the basement like somewhere. Mine are in like a ball at their house in a safe. Now all the medals are in the safe.

But you don't. You don't have you don't have your displayed. No, and I never will. Do you ever bring them out? Uh? No? Only if I have, you know something, and someone requests me to have them for a shoot or something. I think what I realized was, yes, we're proud, like but we we know what we have. We don't need to see it every day. We're not going to forget that we did that. And then it becomes, oh, are you doing that for other people? I don't know, and I

fully support other people doing that. It's just like a personal thing. I think it's like they don't define who we are as people, and so you know, I'd rather have those. Yeah, I'm gonna like save this blot leg like not gonna I'm literally so the only thing I have,

like in this office, I'll show you. But my uncle, my dad's brother, recently passed, but there were these like it's like a ring essentially, and my mom bought five of them and then they're like wooden, and then he cut two of them down and so now they've they've gone with me, so they're like way up there. Yeah, so that's my subtle moment. And also it's become you know,

sentimental because he's no longer with us. But yeah, I just I think for us, it was going home to a place of like clear your mind, not like getting home from a bad day at training, to like this being in your faith. You know, No, that's really interesting, particularly from your parents, I will say here's what I think you should do. I'm gonna you can do whatever

you want, obviously, but I'm gonna love your advice. Here's what I think you should do because I think, right, there's a fine line, right, And I'll just say, if you're a guy who wants super Bowl and I'm not judging anyone, but if you're wearing your super Bowl ring every single day, this is yeah. But I think for you, I'm just gonna say this because I've been around a couple of other Olympians. I think occasionally you're invited to an event or you do something, I think you bring it.

I think you bring it because let me say why, Because then it's not about you, it's about sharing with them. Oh I never thought about it that way. Just just think about it. Next time I see you, you're gonna you're gonna about, You're gonna come You're gonna come up and you're gonna be like, here it is. I wear it every day now. No, But I think it's it's something to think about. I love that perspective. I think it's it's just something to think about because I think, yeah,

it becomes about you. Don't want it to become about you, and I can I can hear that from you. Other people would enjoy seeing it and again, and so then thank you for making me feel very selfish. Now, no, no, I'm just kidding. I'm not saying that, but I I totally understand what you're saying. And I think you know, it's the same thing when you have something you don't want it to feel like you're, you know, showing it off whatever you don't have it. Yeah, but I've never

thought about it in that way. And I do have to say the amount of times I've been in a situation or somewhere an event or whatever and people are like, do you have your whole medal? And I'm like no, So you know, I've never thought yeah, But thank you for sharing that, because it'll be my newest accessory in my You retire, you're three years old. We've talked about

it a lot. You retire so young. But since that time much has been done and accomplished by you, not the least of which the Nastia Cup Next year year, um, this year, this year, Well, we're okay, this year, the next time it happens. Yes, you're making me. Now, you're making specific the next competition will be why did you decide to start what is BECAU now one of the

most prestigious gymnastics competition out there. So basically because of what you just said with the metal, you know, to give somebody else that that chance, that that you know, to see it whatever, to inspire and give the next generation their Olympic moment, you know, their moment of being one of the best of the best in the best

country in in the gymnastic world. And it's so surreal to see, you know, on people's on these athletes bios or you know, a lot of them are in college now and and one of the hot like three bullets is you know, Nazis and Cup qualifier and that to me is like wait what, Like it's so meaningful to me, Like I have not I have not made a single penny.

This is not about money. This is truly about trying to give these girls, this next generation, that moment because some might, some may get it right, some may go on to getting that, but most won't because the field

is so small and there's so many incredible gymnasts. And I try to spend as much time with that, like real time with them that weekend because they view you know me, you like, as you know, they follow on social media or whatever, and it's like it's almost like you're not a real human and you know you don't have you know, one year, I was going through a breakup literally a week before and I like told them, and I was like, don't tweet about it, you know,

but like, um, you know, I'm just kidding. But it was like, honestly, like I want to be in my bed right now, Like I don't want, you know, but I you guys are giving me, you know, the life I get. Like, so I think just being able to be vulnerable, being able to be real where you know, we live in this era of social media and this next generation has literally that's all they know. And yeah, it's about gymnastics as much as it is just about life and humanizing each other and making them feel special.

You have transitioned well into the world of entertainment, obviously Dancing with the Stars, the voice of NBC Gymnastics during the Olympics, among many other things. I want to ask you briefly about your relationship to the late Kobe Bryant, who you've called mentor. First of all, how did you become so close and what was it that he did

for you that inspired you. So we both competed in Beijing, and I met him for the first time there very briefly, and I again kind of going back to my cup and you know, my goals and dreams and the things outside of that, even that you know I'm working on and I want to do. But I remember it was one of the sps kind of blinking on exactly the

year but he won. It was right after he retired, and he won the Lifetime Achievement Award, and I remember just watching him on the stage in the audience thing, and he the one thing specifically, he was like, I hope this isn't the last time that I'm on this stage. I hope the next time I'm on the stage is winning an award to inspire the next generation. And it was just this moment of wow, like you know, I had met him, I wasn't close with him then, but

I felt so just like aligned on like missions. And so I literally think I like messaged him on Twitter. I didn't have his like phone number or anything at the time, and and I just said, like COVID congratulation. I know, like, I know you're busy abla law, like I'd love to just pick your brain because I have this idea. Like that's my whatever. Long story short, He responded back literally within minutes. Here's my number, here's my email.

Let's let's get together. I want to talk. And he had a way of just wanting to help everybody and amongst so many things. But what he, you know, really instilled in me was that stop putting yourself in that box. Stop putting yourself in the box of being the girl in the pink guitar with the matching pink scruncheet, because you are way more than just that. Yes, that's something you did, be proud of that, but that's that doesn't

define who you are. It was just that it was a moment of him showing me through his own career essentially,

you know. And and he did it in a very like not copy way, but he was like, look at me, like nobody's everyone told me to sit down and keep shooting hoops, that I couldn't do this, and and look I did it at times ten and I couldn't do this, and I like got nominated and then I want and he goes, watch me, I'm gonna win next week and It was just like this moment of like any time I would pick up the phone or text or call him, he would answer right away, like how are you, how's

it going? What are you up to? Like tell me how I can help? He would, you know, he was writing a book and he goes, okay, so Genassis competition, are you allowed to have like rap music or is it just classical? Like he just was so like in the details, and I just like laugh hearing it, and I was like, honestly, I mean I guess you could. I guess you canna have it, but like, could you see me having that? Like I mean, put more of like the classical time. But he just he truly cared.

So I think that's what I remember, you know most was like please please, please please, like don't lose that mission and that purpose and that passion because there needs to be more of that. He was just like such an incredible mentor and made me believe in myself and you know, made me believe that I truly was more than the gymnast. Right. It was the same way my dad flipped my mentality of there's no way you're not going to win if you just do X, Y and

Z Kobe helped me flip. You're not the gymnast. You did gymnastics right, and so when you don't define yourself by one thing or one accomplishment, it changes everything. Amazing. I could talk to you all day. You have so much going on. We haven't even touched on your fashion. We haven't touched on Special Force. Oh I do have to add kew about Special Forces. How did that go for you? Was it? Did that bring you back to your gym? Did you train? No? I did not train.

I literally well I didn't know I did. I found out very very late in the game basically, And then you know, my mentality was, if I start training now, I'm going to be sore, I'm going to be exhausted. I'm gonna like I literally had less than a week, so why would I like I was so far out of my Olympic shape like I was. It was too late, So I kind of thought, I know, I'm not going to be the strongest whatever, but mentally I need to

go into this like mentally in a good place. And for me, that's like not being sore, not being exhausted like whatever. And there was a moment on the like the tight road or the cable crossing. Yes that I literally I thought I was on the beam in Beijing. It like snapped back to that I was falling, like

I almost fell seven ish times. And right as I was like completely like bench over backwards or forward or whatever, I would in my mind just tell myself like the gold medal is on the line, and I would just be like and then yeah, I Like when I finally got across, they were like, how did you do that? And I was like, I don't know if my arms were on fire, but it was mind over matter and mean, it was crazy. It was you know, it's the show doesn't even begin to even show half of how everything

it was. But I do have to say, like such an incredible group of people that I never thought i'd call all, like, we're all family and friends when you when you go through something like that, and I kind of relate it to my Olympic teammates, and you know, you have that bond for the rest of your life when you're going through that. So it was glad I did it. Would do it all over again. Great experience, not quite for me, like I prefer, you know, not to have forty pounds of backpack on me at all times.

It was great and looking forward to like watching you know the rest of the season. Yeah. You you're incredible. Your story is amazing, Your dedication to our future is great, Your work ethic is unparalleled. Your family, your father and mother's decision and the sacrifices they made for their dream. It really is the American dream. I'm not trying to be cheesy, but that is the absolute definition of it. I will talk to you anytime, anywhere. It's so good

to see you again as your favorite non Olympic trainee. Um, well, hey, let's not let's not let's not years. Let's not wait thirteen more years before we do it again. All right, maybe maybe we don't like we skip the training part this time. Okay, fair enough, we give me at the gym, but doesn't mean we have to train, right, that's right. Thank you, Thank you so much, Nastia, Thank you so much. This was so great. We are not going to go another thirteen years before we see each other again. Thank

you for coming on the podcast. I look forward to seeing you compete once again, but this time one. Special Forces listeners have a wonderful Tuesday or Wednesday or whatever day it is. You're listening to this, I'm going to see you next week for another episode of Off the Beat. Have a great week, everybody. Off the Beat is hosted an executive produced by me Brian Baumgartner, alongside our executive producer Lang Lee. Our senior producer is Diego Tapia. Our

producers are Liz Hayes, Hannah Harris, and Emily Carr. Our talent producer is Ryan Papa Zachary, and our intern is Sammy Cats. Our theme song Bubble and Squeak, performed by the one and Only Creed bretton wo