There is a reason cliches become cliché. Some things people just keep repeating. Such was the case at the Orlando County Thursday night as 600 plus parents and kids packed the atrium to the point of standing room only capacity. All were there to see Olympic Gold Medalist Gabrielle Douglas, as she made her sixth stop on the “Grace, Gold, & Glory” book tour.

The book is a memoir detailing the challenges faced, and sacrifices made by Douglas on her way to becoming the first African-American female to win all around Gold at the Olympics. Reggie Smothers arrived with nine-year old daughter, Zakaria, at two o’clock, four hours before the 6pm start time, to be sure of meeting the Olympian. They were the first in line. Opposite them in a line specifically for non-library members, a mother of two had driven two hours to make sure her daughter would meet their gymnastic idol. It is a testament to both the little-publicized popularity of young gymnasts and Douglas’s own popularity that both lines snaked backward until reaching the opposite end of the library.

Douglas’s mother, Natalie Hawkins, still has not gotten used to the response to her daughter. “Right after she won, people would get out of their cars in the middle of the street to run and take a picture with her. But even at the signing in Virginia (months after her win) we had 700 people show up. 600 at the next stop. And tonight this is the strongest response it seems yet. We feel blessed.”

One can only imagine what it must feel like to see young girls and adults alike crowed into a room, and chanting your name. At one point a chant of “Gabby,” “Gabby,” “Gabby,” reverberated through the library book stacks, followed by the crowd singing Happy Birthday, after the publisher of Grace, Gold, & Glory announced Douglas’s upcoming birthday on December 31.

Douglas took it in stride, commenting more than once in her Q&A session that she felt blessed and appreciated those that she has inspired. One rather poignant question was about how Dominique Dawes had inspired Douglas. “Dominique was my inspiration when I was growing up. And after I won I saw later on television Dominique crying.”

When speaking about being the first African-American female to win the all around Gold, Douglas clearly understands the significance, saying, “I’m glad I can be an inspiration for others because I know there are not a lot of black girls in gymnastics.”

The crowd yelled loudly when city officials mentioned the historic win as Orlando County Mayor Teresa Jacobs and city Commissioner Samuel Ings each presented Douglas with keys to the city. To the credit of the crowd, and the country at large, the response from the crowd was twice as loud simply for Douglas being Douglas. Not one color or ethnic group stood out. At one point the sheer number of people made things get a little chaotic, but the young girls (and some boys) took it all in stride because they loved Douglas for being a great gymnast, and an American gold medal winner. The fact that she happens to be black is more important to the historians than her fans.

The best question of the night came from Brittany who asked: “Were you scared the first time you got on the uneven bars, cause I’m scared.”

With the brilliant smile that has become as much her signature as her tumbling skills, Gabby responded, “Yes there first time I was on them I was scared. But, I knew I could do it. And so can you. You can do it, just go out there and have fun. Don’t let fear stop you.”

That is perhaps the best lesson anyone; young or old can learn from America’s new sweet heart.

Gabby Douglas book signing – free slideshow maker with music

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Amid the self-proclaimed comparisons to the 1992 “Dream Team”, a side that boasted eleven future NBA Hall of Famers, notably the likes of Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson, one vital fact seems to be consistently overlooked; the 2012 United States Men’s National Basketball Team is yet to play a competitive game. With the Olympic Games kicking off this weekend in London, Team USA looks to validate the hype and bring a record fourteenth gold medal back to the States.

This Olympic tournament however is likely to pose much more of a challenge to Team USA than their 1992 Dream Team counterparts encountered. Since those Olympic Games in Barcelona  twenty years ago, the global aptitude for basketball has increased exponentially due to the likes of international superstars Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, and Manu Ginobili making their marks in the National Basketball Association, the world’s elite basketball league.

Despite the increases in both quantity and quality of competition, the American fans expect nothing less then a gold medal from Team USA. When you consider the United States teams hold an all-time record of 122 wins and 5 losses at the Olympic games, it is easy to see why expectations are so high for this talented group of athletes.

Team USA will be sporting some of the NBA’s most prolific talent in its efforts to repeat their 2008 gold medal run. All-time greats and sure fire future hall of famers Kobe Bryant and Lebron James, arguably the two greatest players in the world today, will be joined by rookie phenom Anthony Davis and nine other perennial All-Stars; Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Andre Iguodala, Kevin Love, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, and Deron Williams. The United States talent isn’t limited to NBA championship rings and on court prowess; coach Mike Krzyzewski has won eight gold medals from the bench and boasts 927 career wins as a collegiate coach. With accolades like this, it is no wonder that Team USA is the odds on favorite to win gold in London.

Team USA begins their campaign on Sunday, July 29 against Group A rivals France. The Olympic tournament consists of twelve teams split into two groups of six, with the top four teams from each group advancing to the quarterfinals, where the remaining eight sides will compete to make to the semifinals and the opportunity to win a medal.

The two winning semifinal teams will then meet in the gold medal game on Sunday, August 11.  The number two rated team in the world behind the United States, Spain, lead by brothers Pau and Marc Gasol, anchors a bottom heavy Group B, potentially setting up a highly anticipated USA vs. Spain gold medal rematch from 2008. It’s worth noting that Team USA racked up a twenty-two point victory over the Spanish in their final exhibition tune-up on July 24.

Although the Olympics are a time for international harmony and patriotism, this 2012 campaign is all business for Team USA- it is gold medal or bust for these superstars. This team knows that if the court of public opinion is going to justify comparisons to the ’92 Dream Team, they are going to have to win, and win big. We’ve heard them talk the biggest game around, now it’s finally time for Team USA to back it up on the court in their effort to make history and bring the gold medal back across the Atlantic Ocean like their predecessors Jordan, Johnson and Bird did ten years ago.

Image Courtesy of    USA Basketball

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