Stephen Nedoroscik is quite the name among US gymnastics fans. When the chips were down at the Olympics, Nedoroscik’s impeccable Pommel Horse routine brought joy and 2 Olympic bronze medals to the country. Having gone without an Olympic medal for 16 long years, this year’s victory means a lot to all the gymnastics enthusiasts. Now, after becoming overly famous due to his antics in Paris, Nedoroscik has earned himself a surprising nickname.
With his boyish charms and the spectacles, fans have connected his resemblance with the DC character, Clark Kent. Known as the ‘Clark Kent of gymnastics,’ a little backstory to his physical conditions will prove that Nedoroscik is a real hero. Firstly, the 26-year-old has a couple of eye conditions that make it all the more difficult for him to perform.
Stephen Nedoroscik’s challenging ascension to gymnastics glory
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Nedoriscik has coloboma, which affects the development of his eye significantly. Next up, he also suffers from strabismus. Under this condition, his eyes become cross-sighted inward, which is also known as lazy eye. And it is to combat this particular issue that Nedoroscik wears the specs. Well, his list of physical challenges is not done yet. In an interview with the New York Post, Nedoroscik opened up about his asthma. In a concerning update, the Olympian mentioned that he carries his inhaler all the time with him to ensure things do not go out of hand.
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Lastly, the Olympic champion also has ADHD! Surely, with all the physical barriers coming his way, performing at the top level must be significantly challenging. Opening up on his struggles recently on ’The Squeeze’ on YouTube, Nedoroscik stated, “I have a few things wrong with my eyes. Generally, l have bad vision, just like normal bad vision—not too bad. Then I have strabismus, which is the typical “cross-eyed” condition where one of your eyes goes a little inward.” The Olympian then went on to stress a major flaw of having strabismus. He said, “Some things that go along with those conditions-well, with strabismus, I have no depth perception.”
However, while the consequences do look concerning, Nedoroscik has turned out to be lucky. He explained how in gymnastics, depth perception does not come into account much. Thus, he can have a little breathing space while doing the one thing that he loves doing the most. Now, fighting all the challenges, Stephen Nedoroscik has gone on to become an Olympic champion. But despite that, there’s an ironic feeling that Nedoroscik cannot let go of despite being an Olympian.
Battling Four Medical Conditions, Stephen Nedoroscik Reveals the Challenges of Gymnastics with Two Eye Diseases: ‘No Depth Perception’
