Stephen Nedoroscik, the bespectacled Rubik’s Cube whiz who stole American hearts with his pommel horse heroics at the Paris Olympics, is going to compete on Dancing With the Stars.
The 25-year-old confirmed his participation in season 33 of the show on Thursday morning during an appearance on Good Morning America. Asked if he’d bring some of his gymnastics moves to the dance floor, Nedoroscik said: “I want to bring some of that gymnastics, maybe a backflip or a handstand. I want to have fun with it.”
Nedoroscik became an overnight viral sensation at the Paris Games thanks in part to his pommel horse performance, which helped Team USA take bronze, its first medal in gymnastics since 2008.
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But netizens went wild for Nedoroscik in particular because of the unbelievably cool way in which he did it. The last to compete, he had to wait around two-and-a-half hours before it was his turn to step up. As the pressure mounted, television cameras appeared to capture Nedoroscik with his eyes closed and head back such that it looked like he was asleep—images that quickly became a meme on social media.
When the moment came, Nedoroscik whipped off his glasses and helped save the day for his country, immediately sparking comparisons to Clark Kent’s trademark move to transform into Superman. Days later, Nedoroscik also won himself a bronze medal in the men’s pommel horse individual event.
On Good Morning America, Nedoroscik explained that he hadn’t actually nodded off in the lead-up to the most important moment of his competitive life.
“As that sort of moment is catching up and you’re getting closer to your competition time, your heart rate is just going crazy,” Nedoroscik explained. “So I’m just trying to stay calm. So I’m really just focusing on my breathing exercises, visualization, and then it’s go time.”
Nedoroscik said he thinks he’ll be doing the same thing before his DWTS appearances. He was also asked about what he’ll do with his glasses, which he wears to address his vision-impairing conditions, strabismus and coloboma. Strabismus, also known as eye misalignment, is a condition in which one eye is turned in a different direction from the other, according to the Cleveland Clinic, while coloboma is a region of missing tissue in the eye, most commonly the iris.
Nedoroscik doesn’t wear his glasses when he competes, meaning he has to navigate the pommel horse by feel. He also doesn’t have a driver’s license due to his vision, according to The Athletic.
“I might have fun with it,” Nedoroscik said about wearing his glasses on Dancing With the Stars. “I’m scared they’ll fly off, is the thing. But, you know, maybe we could do a gadget, keep ’em on. Maybe a new pair of glasses, match the theme, right?”
