The 2024 Paris Olympic Games have so much of the country locked in this summer. Perhaps most notably, Team USA women’s gymnastics has fans absolutely hyped over their multiple wins they’ve acquired at the Games. But even though there’s tons of excitement surrounding the members of the American team, there’s actually another American gymnast fans should be cheering on: Luisa Blanco, who was born in Los Angeles, raised in Dallas, and went to college in Alabama — but is competing for her parents’ home country of Columbia.
Not only is Blanco making both the U.S. and Colombia proud as she competes at the Olympic Games, but also, the recent University of Alabama grad is making history as she was the first Colombian artistic gymnast to ever reach an Olympic final.
After taking 30th place in the individual artistic all-arounds qualifying round on Sunday, June 28, (earning a score of 51.698 to secure her spot in the finals), Blanco competed in the Aug. 1st finals, coming in 23rd place earning a score of 50.199.
At just 22 years old, Blanco has already accomplished so much, and she serves as an inspiration to so many people. Here’s what else fans should know about her:
Luisa Blanco competed for the University of Alabama’s gymnastics team.
While this is Blanco’s first appearance in the the Olympics, she’s no stranger to the sport. She actually competed on the gymnastics team for the University of Alabama for five years while she was a student there.
At the 2021 SEC Championships, Blanco helped her Bama team win the title, while also winning the all-around, vault, and uneven bars. With all of these accomplishments under her belt, she was named the 2021 SEC Gymnast of the Year. The following year at the 2022 SEC Champions, Blanco helped Alabama earn second place while coming in second place herself against fellow Olympian Sunisa Lee on the uneven bars. Blanco sustained a minor injury on the balance beam, but made a strong return when she came in second in the all-around during the 2023 SEC Champions and helped her team earn second place as well. Her NCAA career concluded with 21 All-American honors, which is the most of any gymnast in the program’s history.
Blanco graduated from the Bama in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in political science and a minor in social welfare, then decided to continue her education at Bama, earning a masters degree in communication studies in May 2024. As noted in her Linkedin profile, she also has work experience as a panelist for ESPN and as a gymnastics coach.
Blanco now competes as a gymnast for Colombia.
In 2023, Blanco announced she’d be returning to elite gymnastics as a representative of Columbia. She helped Columbia win fifth at the 2023 Pan American Games.
She can do so despite being born and raised in the U.S. because she has dual citizenship in both countries. According to the Olympic Charter: “Any competitor in the Olympic Games must be a national of the country of the NOC which is entering such competitor. A competitor who is a national of two or more countries at the same time may represent either one of them, as he may elect.”
Blanco Is active on Social Media.
Good news for fans: Blanco is quite active on social media. She has been sharing her Olympic journey with her 54,000 followers on Instagram, with several videos documenting the experience — such as a “Come to Paris With Me” vlog where she romanitices every part of her trip, a “Day In My Life: Olympics Edition” video, and a behind-the-scenes look of her during an off day where she is getting her hair done at the Olympic Village. Those who are interested in learning more about Blanco should def give her a follow!