Olympic Gold Medalist Gabby Douglas Reveals She Can Read, Speak Hebrew
by Shiryn Ghermezian

Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas knows how to read and speak “a little” Hebrew, she revealed in the Aug. 15 issue of Us Weekly.
The 20-year-old gymnast, who told the magazine that her favorite book is the Bible, was featured in a spread about the USA gymnastics team — which was awarded the gold medal in the women’s all-around finals at the Olympics in Rio on Aug. 9.
In her 2012 memoir, In Grace, Gold, and Glory: My Leap of Faith, Douglas wrote that her family “practiced some of the Jewish traditions.” She explained that the connection to Judaism began with her mother, Natalie Hawkins, and maternal grandmother, who occasionally prepared kosher meals. In addition, Hawkins studied Hebrew, according to the Jewish culture website Jewcy.com.
With the release of her book, the gold medalist told Us Weekly that her favorite food is matzah ball soup.