Fred Richard, after doing handstands his entire life, was built to break onto the Olympic stage

MINNEAPOLIS — He’s sucking on a pacifier and wearing a onesie that, it appears, is filled with a diaper. Frederick Richard, who is crammed into the far corner of his crib, is also doing a handstand. In the charming photo published a year ago in Richard’s college newspaper, the Michigan Daily, his older sister stands on the side of the crib, staring at him. Because, well, he’s just a toddler and he’s doing a handstand.

This is where we state the obvious: Richard, the newly minted all-around champion at the US Olympic Gymnastics Trials and the 2024 Olympian, was born to do this. Which he’ll tell you, he was. He longed to go to a gym, begged to stay in a gym, and never wanted to leave since his parents first let him try gymnastics. He packed up family vacations and begged for instruction.

His path was by no means linear: his first coaches sent him home until he got his energy under control, and as he rose through the system, he was essentially held back at gymnastics school, where he “repeated” levels four, five and six.

But he reaches this perfect precipice, the Paris Olympics, at just the right time for American men’s gymnastics.

The U.S. men have won just one team gold in their history. Just before the latest version of the Olympic team was announced, that team was celebrated here in honor of its anniversary: ​​its 40th (!). To be honest, the US isn’t even picky about the medal color at this point. The Americans’ last Olympic team medal came in 2008.

After a disappointing fifth-place finish in Tokyo, program directors made a concerted effort to make the Americans more competitive. The United States arrived at the 2020 Games by essentially running uphill; their routines lagged far behind the sport’s leaders in difficulty. After that, national team organizers made creating more difficult routines a priority. The result is that the Americans are third in terms of difficulty heading into Paris, behind Japan and China, but only two and 3.6 points behind respectively, and solid execution could close the gap. (Granted, it helps that the Russians — gold medalists in Tokyo — won’t be there in Paris either.)

“We control our own destiny,” said program director Brett McClure. “What’s the goal? To get back on stage. That’s the goal. That’s the objective. That’s all we’re striving for.”

There are plenty of medalists on the team, but it’s Richard who has the best shot. Despite a face-plant after crashing off the high bar, he finished third at the 2023 world championships, becoming the first American man to medal in the all-around there in 13 years. His routines are fraught with difficulty—of the six events here, he finished first on the high beam, second on the parallel bars and third on the floor—and at 20, he’s young enough to get sharper and better.

Fred Richard withdrew his NCAA training to focus on the Olympic lead-up. It paid off on Saturday with an all-around title at the US tests. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Of course, it’s all about the medals. It’s always about the medals. Lots of medals are the reason the women’s team members are so famous and the men remain relatively anonymous. America loves a winner, and the American men haven’t put one on the Olympic podium in a while.

However, Richard is not only athletically up to the task; his personality is ideally suited to become the face of a team in desperate need of one. Bright smile, charming personality, emotionally charged – all conveniently packed into one very powerful athlete. Some call him cocky, but a little arrogance can do the US a lot of good

Immediately after securing his spot, Richard promised hardware. Asked what people could expect from him in Paris, Richard grinned: “What can you expect from me and the team in Paris? Medals. You can expect to see some medals in Paris.”

You will undoubtedly see what Richard does on social media. He has more than 600,000 followers on TikTok, where he likes to show off his skills. He has also wisely dipped feet first into the growing opportunities that name, image and likeness offer. He has deals with Crocs, Peloton and Celsius, not to mention a clothing line (frederickflips).

In other words, he’s the kind of athlete built to grace the Olympic stage.

And he doesn’t just know it; he is not afraid of it. Numerous athletes – including swimmers Caeleb Dressel and Regan Smith, and 2020 all-around gold medalist Sunisa Lee – have spoken openly about how overwhelming it is to suddenly be thrust into the spotlight. Olympic athletes are both lifers and phenoms, toiling in relative obscurity for countless years to make an Olympic team, only to arrive like a shooting star in the short three weeks the world finally watches. Few are ready and not everyone is ready.

Richard seems ready for his spotlight. He purposefully, if reluctantly, reduced his workload in his sophomore season at the University of Michigan to pursue his Olympic dream (he still finished second in the all-around at the NCAA championships), devising a plan that to his delight—and surprise—has gone virtually without a hitch. After the NCAAs, he finished second at the U.S. championships and earned his spot at trials.

But faced with the challenge of his first Olympic Trials, Richard flipped the switch on what almost everyone called a high-pressure situation.

“It was more like a going away party,” he said. “A celebration. The hard work was done. The competition days are the easy days. For months before, I gave it my all. My body was ready. My mind just had to relax and let my body do the work.”

He more or less admits that Paris is a different animal. For starters, there are more days of competition, with qualifying rounds, team finals, all-around finals and event finals, so he wants to increase his workload to prepare for the demands. The competition is even fiercer, of course, and he plans to refine his routines to get the most value out of them.

But he is also, just minutes after his status upgrade to 2024 Olympian, already moving his own goalposts. The goal of becoming an Olympian realized, the dream of winning a medal articulated, what is a little bit of global domination?

“I mean, I’m 20 years old,” he said. “The whole world is watching. I’m going to give them something to enjoy.”

Kind of like throwing a handstand into a cradle.

GO DEEPER

Frederick Richard spotlights the US men’s gymnastics team

(Top photo of Richard after his exercise with the horse on Saturday at the US trials: Elsa / Getty Images)

(Photo: Elsa/Getty Images)