Whittenburg over the years
Just two years ago, Whittenburg made his first ever Olympic Trials as he tried to make the coveted U.S. team for Rio 2016.
When the Olympic team was announced after that competition eight years ago, he was named an alternate for the Games. Recalling that moment, he told Olympics.com he left St. Louis feeling “humble.”
It came as a shock to the then 21-year-old, who thought his year of performances leading up to the trials put him in a position to be a shoo-in for the Rio team.
The previous year, he won the bronze medal on vault at the World Championships, as well as silver medals on floor, rings and vault at the Pan American Games.
“I was very humiliated at that point, so I think the fact that that happened kind of reset me and made me think, ‘Oh, even if you were one of the best in the country… anything can happen.'”
In his second round of Olympic trials in 2021, Whittenburg received even worse news. He failed to finish in the top eight at the end of the competition and was not selected for Tokyo 2020.
But resilience and perseverance have kept Whittenburg on the international stage for a full decade, since making his World Championship debut in 2014.
Now, over the next few days, the world will see if its Olympic dreams can finally come true.
