Breakout Stars of the 2012 Olympics

Jordyn Wieber

Age: 16
Event: Artistic Gymnastics (Women’s)
Hometown: DeWitt, Michigan

Jordyn Wieber is the all-around world gymnastics champion from 2011. She’s also a high school student who will have just celebrated her 17th birthday when the Olympics kick off in late July. She participates in a brutally competitive sport, one in which a minor flinch here or a slight misstep there could be the difference between getting the gold or not. It’s also a sport that completely favors youth—you won’t see any women in their 20s gaining coverage as contenders for the all-around title. There’s so much subjectivity when it comes to gymnastics though, so all we can say is that Wieber has at least as good a chance as anyone else at taking home the gold, and she’ll definitely be fun to watch as the “It Girl” on the U.S. gymnastics team.