Sports
Stephen Nedoroscik's legend grows with Olympic bronze on pommel horse
PARIS — Aptly, he tucked an American flag into the back of his sweatshirt collar, turning the stars and stripes into a cape. Stephen Nedoroscik is, after all, America’s new favorite superhero.
A star crafted straight out of the Olympic script, Nedoroscik stars on a piece of equipment that the average sports fan has no earthly idea how to determine a good routine from a bad one. He wears glasses because of a congenital eye disease that renders his eyes permanently dilated, solves Rubik’s Cubes for relaxation, eats exactly six pieces of green apple and a chocolate muffin on competition days, and laughs like something straight out of “Beavis and Butt-Head.”
When he sat down at the dais for his news conference after securing a second bronze medal, Nedoroscik took the index finger of his right hand and pushed his glasses back onto the bridge of his nose. The only thing missing from central casting — a piece of tape to hold them together.
But when Nedoroscik swings on the pommel horse, flying through a routine that is obviously complex enough that even the gymnastics novices would know that it’s good, he is Clark Kent post phone booth, his glasses shed and his entire being transformed.
Stephen Nedoroscik finishes his pommel horse routine in the final and the crowd goes WILD! 👏 #ParisOlympics
📺 E! and Peacock pic.twitter.com/JbCPmqNJA7
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 3, 2024
Six nights ago, Nedoroscik nailed his routine — the very last of the night — to assure the United States its first team medal in men’s gymnastics in 16 years. On Monday, he spent the evening screaming for his teammates, cupping his mouth with his hands to make sure his support was heard. But on Saturday night, Nedoroscik sat at the end of the competition area alone. His head cast downward, staring at the floor, he didn’t so much as glance over as the first four gymnasts performed, let alone glance at the scoreboard.
In a script flip from the team final, Nedoroscik went smack dab in the middle, fifth out of eight gymnasts. He nailed a 15.300, slotting him in third place. Instead of waiting to compete, he had to wait to ensure he got on the podium. When South Korea’s Hur Woong fell off the apparatus, securing the bronze, Nedoroscik thrust his hands into the air, to the delight of the crowd.
“It’s definitely not the best scenario to be in, when there’s a few more gymnasts to go and you’re sitting in third,’’ Nedoroscik said. “It’s a little bit of a nail-biter, but I was confident that my score was maybe good enough to hold.’’
It is that confidence that maybe has been unappreciated in this whole nerd-to-champion run. Nedoroscik did not happen onto the Olympic stage accidentally. He is a 2021 World Champion and a two-time NCAA Champion. He was intentionally put on the U.S. squad to ensure a better team score. Men’s gymnastics purposefully opted away from the more subjective selection process that the women used, opting instead to run the numbers and see what spits out the best score. In every scenario, adding Nedoroscik made sense.
But let’s be serious. No one cares about any of that. The joy of the Olympics comes as much from the unexpected as the impressive. Simone Biles, who secured her seventh gold medal just a few minutes before Nedoroscik competed, is inevitable. Nedoroscik is Everyman, relatable thanks to his ordinariness outside of his pommel horse extraordinariness. He is not someone that you would stop and stare at if he were to walk down the street; he does not scream Olympic athlete.
And so when he of all people became an Olympic hero, he walked straight into the vortex of American fame, an underdog turned into a champion, winning one for the U.S. of A. Nedoroscik exploded as only one can in today’s social media world. His is now a face that launched a thousand memes, plenty Nedoroscik has seen himself. An eyewear company, eyebobs, cleverly launched a marketing campaign around his specs, renaming — or reframing as it were — one of their designs into “the Stephen.’’ At 11:16 a.m, ET, the time Nedoroscik was slated to compete, people could try to claim a free pair. The New York Post’s Page Six and US Weekly did a blurb about his girlfriend.
Nedorosock has been both delightfully amused by all of it — “Really? She was? I didn’t know that,’’ Nedoroscik said about the insta-fame of Tess McCracken, his girlfriend. “Go Tess,’’ — and delightfully amusing. Asked who was the most famous person to reach out to him on social media, Nedoroscik said, “The guy that wrote “Fault in Our Stars” tweeted about me. That was insane.’’ That would be John Green, author of the melodrama about two terminally ill teenagers.
But he also knew that, despite what people said about him after the team final, he did not just have one job to do; he had two. He wanted an event final medal as well, and the competition, he knew would be fierce. Rhys McClenaghan, who would win the gold for Ireland, is a two-time World Champion; Max Whitlock, from Great Britain, won the last two Olympic medals on pommel horse, and the gap between first and sixth in qualifying was as measly .200.
So after enjoying his 15 minutes of fame for a handful of days, Nedoroscik purposefully turned off his notifications. He wanted to quiet the noise. Nedoroscik owns an electrical engineering degree from Penn State and his coach, Randy Jespon, told The Athletic that he’s extremely analytical. He likes routine, and so in an Olympic village devoid of his teammates, who already finished competing, he hunkered down. He tinkered with his Rubik’s Cube, trying to beat his under-10-second goal. He listened to music. He ate his apples and his muffin.
Nedoroscik tinkered with changing his routine, maybe adding difficulty in response to the talented field. He tried a few alternatives, but didn’t like how they felt, and as he said after the team final, his routine is “all by feel.’’
So he went with what felt right.
There is no arguing that Nedoroscik would have loved a gold; the U.S. hasn’t won one in an individual event since 1984. But when the moderator at the post-meet news conference introduced McClenaghan explaining that it was Ireland’s first Olympic medal in gymnastics, the true to his nature Nedoroscik raised his eyebrows. “Dude, that is soooo cool,’’ he said, reaching over to give the Irishman a bro handshake.
The two exchange challenges, each referencing Los Angeles. Later Nedoroscik confirmed his future plans with no hesitation. “I’m definitely running it back in 2028,’’ he said. But that is for another day.
In the immediate, Nedoroscik was looking forward to reconnecting with his family, turning his notifications back on and resting his weary body. Even superheroes, after all, need a break.
Required reading
(Photo: Jamie Squire / Getty Images)
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CM Punk appeared on “Friday Night SmackDown” ready to take on any challenger that was ready to step to him after winning the Undisputed WWE Championship against Sami Zayn.
Punk entered the ring in Oklahoma City and called back to the “Monday Night Raw” after WrestleMania 42 when he told Cody Rhodes he’d be ready to deliver if a championship opportunity fell “out of the sky.”
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Cody Rhodes and CM Punk face off during SmackDown at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Okla. (Craig Ambrosio/WWE via Getty Images)
“When championship opportunities fall out of the sky, CM Punk catches them,” he said.
Punk named potential SmackDown superstars he’d think might come for the title, including Gunther, Finn Balor, Royce Keys, Damian Priest and Trick Williams. He even said that Zayn could come back around and get his rematch if he wanted. He didn’t mention Rhodes’ name, but the “American Nightmare” came out uncalled and marched his way down to the ring.
“I don’t think you and I can run away from each other anymore,” Punk told Rhodes.
Cody Rhodes looks on during SmackDown at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Okla., on July 10, 2026. (Craig Ambrosio/WWE via Getty Images)
Rhodes agreed and mentioned that Punk would want a match with him, just “say when.” It was a quick retort from Punk, who said, “when.” SmackDown general manager Nick Aldis, who was in the ring for the segment, booked the match for SummerSlam.
Punk will defend the Undisputed WWE Championship at SummerSlam, which takes place Aug. 1 and 2 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
First, however, Punk and Rhodes will be involved in a tag team match at Saturday Night’s Main Event in New York City next week. Aldis made the match after Gunther demanded that Aldis put him in a match against Punk. Gunther was hoping it would be for the championship. Instead, Gunther will tag with Zayn.
Gunther didn’t take too kindly to that and attacked Aldis. Rhodes came back out to break up the calamity. He wanted to take on Gunther after the show went off air but Gunther walked away.
Gunther makes his entrance during SmackDown at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Okla., on July 10, 2026. (Rich Wade/WWE via Getty Images)
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Punk definitely has his hands full as he moves to SmackDown to become a fighting champion.
World Cup tourists are coming to L.A. for the soccer, but they’re staying for the $21 smoothies and Double-Doubles.
As the last Los Angeles FIFA World Cup event ended Friday, soccer fans were eating like locals and famous chains from the region were cashing in.
In the weeks that L.A. has hosted the World Cup, international soccer enthusiasts have flocked to big brands from the area, often in large groups wearing their countries’ jerseys.
It is a phenomenon seen at many of the host cities. In Dallas, giant gas station Buc-ee’s is the main attraction. For people visiting New Jersey, deli shops have been a hot ticket. In L.A., the place to be between matches was Erewhon.
Thirsty international sports fans gathered for pictures outside different Erewhons, wandered their aisles smiling, and, of course, picked up pricey smoothies.
While Erewhon would not comment on its business, mobility data company Arity, which uses phone data to track consumers, said Erewhon visits at the outlets around SoFi Stadium were quadruple what they were a week earlier on June 12, the day of the U.S. national soccer team’s opening match there.
Arity looked at what stores people visited within a 10-mile radius of SoFi that day and also found surges in visitors to nearby El Pollo Loco and Trader Joe’s.
Locals have spotted groups of people in Korea jerseys huddled together, trying to decide what to order at In-N-Out.
Some complained on social media that international tourists at Trader Joe’s were buying up all the mini canvas tote bags.
Soon after the Belgium vs. Spain quarterfinal ended Friday, the In-N-Out near SoFi had a long line of soccer fans stretching out the door in bright red and yellow and black jerseys and matching striped hats and scarves.
One of the workers said he had to explain “spread” and “animal style” to foreign football fans.
“I didn’t know this place existed,” a fan from Romania said while waiting in line.
Los Angeles and other cities and states that have hosted the event need the soccer fans to spend money to make the event worth all the time, effort and money it requires.
A rosy 2024 report projected the World Cup could bring more than $800 million to the L.A. region as 180,000 people converge on the area to sleep, eat and spend.
There were early concerns people weren’t turning up for the event because of the high ticket prices and the difficulty of obtaining visas for citizens of some countries.
However, at least for some L.A. hotels, there was a surge of last-minute visitors which pushed up occupancy and room rates.
While sports fans are not in the region to shop, they do make time for it.
World Cup customer spending is also apparent in beer sales. Andrew Heritage, the chief economist at the Beer Institute said beer purchases at entertainment and attractions in L.A. – outside of World Cup spaces – were up around 10% from normal.
“That tells me that fans in the L.A. area have decided to extend their stay and take in all the other things that the area has to offer, rather than just the match itself,” he said.
On social media, the purpose of these shoppers is clear: grab a quick souvenir or local specialty and take a selfie.
The data from Arity suggests that fans are very efficient when they spend at local spots, diving in, getting what they want and getting out as soon as possible, said Jeff Schlitt, a director at the company.
“Normally you’re there for an hour. They’re going to be there for 15, 18 minutes,” he said. “Why is that? Because they were purpose-driven shoppers.”
For some travelers, the more popular American chains aren’t unfamiliar. But some of the native L.A. fare still comes as a surprise.
As one Belgium-Spain matchgoer from the Netherlands stood taking a picture of the In-N-Out sign after the game, he said he’d never had a burger like the one he’d just tried.
“We only have McDonald’s and Burger King,” he said. “It’s way better.”
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The face of baseball will not be at Tuesday’s All-Star Game.
Shohei Ohtani was scratched from his start on Friday as the Los Angeles Dodgers said he will also miss the Midsummer Classic with what the team called left knee irritation.
Ohtani, for obvious reasons, has become an All-Star Game fixture. He has earned the honor in each of the past five seasons and made his first start in 2021.
Starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers warms up before the MLB game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on June 03, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
The two-way phenom is on his way to winning his fifth MVP award in his last six seasons as he is hitting .290 with a .939 OPS and pitching to a minuscule 1.79 ERA, the second-lowest in the sport among pitchers with 80-plus innings. His OPS is also the seventh-best mark in the league.
The Dodgers said Ohtani will be the team’s designated hitter up until the break, but he will “have some interventions on his knee to put him in the best position for the second half of the season.”
Ohtani dealt with knee issues earlier in the season.
It is certainly a big hit for the game as the other face of the sport, Aaron Judge, will miss the game due to a fractured rib that has kept him out since late May.
Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers gets ready in the on deck circle against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on June 01, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) (Norm Hall/Getty Images)
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Ohtani hit 99 home runs combined in 2024 and 2025, leading the National League with a 1.025 OPS in that span. Ohtani did not pitch in 2024 after elbow surgery but returned to the bump last year and owned a 2.87 ERA and 11.9 K/9, a figure he also put up in 2022 that led the American League.
The “Japanese Babe Ruth” is the only player in MLB history to have 300-plus plate appearances and 40-plus innings in six separate seasons (Ruth only did it twice and never stole 50 bases), and he has more than excelled at both.
Shohei Ohtani pitches for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California, on May 13, 2026. (Gary A. Vasquez/Imagn Images)
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Ohtani is not hitting like he has in the past, but certainly the best pitching performance of his career will make up for it. He “only” has 20 homers and 56 RBI this season.
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