Shannon Miller, the most decorated U.S. Olympic gymnast ever and a cancer survivor, published a book detailing her athletic and personal challenges in an effort to inspire.
She discussed “It’s Not About Perfect” on MSNBC’s “Sports Matters” on Monday.
Miller, 38, was diagnosed with a form of ovarian cancer in January 2011, had a baseball-sized tumor removed, underwent nine weeks of chemotherapy and has been cancer-free for three years.
Miller said she also faced adversity as a gymnast, through injuries and wanting to quit during a career that included seven Olympic medals and nine World Championships medals.
She was most memorably a leader of the 1996 U.S. Olympic gymnastics team, the first U.S. women’s team to earn Olympic gold. Miller said the team is figuring out how to commemorate their 20th anniversary.
“During Rio, basically, we will have our 20th anniversary,” Miller said of the 2016 Olympics. “We try to get together at different events throughout the year, but mostly, like everyone, it’s Facebook and text.”
Miller, who has worked as an Olympic gymnastics analyst since her last Games in 1996, said the currrent U.S. women’s team is “phenomenal.”
“This is one of the best teams we have had, probably ever,” she said. “We wiped out everyone at [the 2014] World Championships. ... I will be shocked, barring injury, if we do not bring home the gold in Rio.”
