FACTOIDS
Full Name: Dominique Margaux Dawes
Nickname: Dominique
Birthday: November 20, 1976
Height: 5’2”
Hometown: Silver Spring, Maryland
Sports: Gymnastics
PROFILE
Dominique Margaux Dawes is a United States gymnast. She was a long time member of the national team, and a three-time Olympian for the U.S. A graduate of the University of Maryland, she now serves as President of the Women's Sports Foundation.
Dominique Dawes changed U.S. amateur sports forever by becoming the first African American to represent the United States in Olympic gymnastics. Her lifetime achievements are impressive, including a clean sweep at the 1994 U.S. National Championships and three appearances in the Olympic Games (1992, 1996, and 2000). Her reputation has been defined by powerful and risky performances that raise the bar for her competitors. Her famous move of tumbling up and back from one corner of the mat to the other without stopping originated when her coaches asked her to do a full maneuver on the tiny mat in her gym; a fitting signature for a young woman who overcame many obstacles to accomplish things no one else had before.
