Hezly Rivera was quite young when it was discovered that she had the skills to become a gymnast. She was taken under the wing of a well-known coach and managed to make it to the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
Although the star failed to qualify for the finals, she still has the love and support of her family. Here’s what we know about her background.
Who Is Hezly Rivera?
Hezly “Hez” Rivera, 16, was born on June 4, 2008, in Hackensack, New Jersey. She and her family, parents Henry Rivera and Heidy Ruiz, and siblings Hanly Rivera and Carhelis Abreu, currently live in Plano, Texas. They moved there in 2021 or 2022 so the gymnast could join the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy (WOGA).
At age five, Hezly attended a friend’s birthday party at a gymnastics facility. The coaching staff approached her parents because of how she stood out with her casual cartwheels and flips. They advised her parents to have her try out for the team.
Hezly made the team with her very first audition, which the coaching team described as “very unusual.” They enrolled her in a class, and she “absolutely fell in love” with gymnastics.
She got hooked on the sport and started her career in 2013, spending hours practicing at ENA Gymnastics in Paramus. Her father recalled, “All she ever wanted to do was be in the gym.”
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