Raising an Olympian: A Lake Forest Mom Reflects on Her Son’s Accomplishments

LAKE FOREST, CA — Nancy Dooley never imagined she would meet an Olympic athlete, much less have raised one with her son, Team USA Men's Gymnast, Logan Dooley. This year, in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, she followed Logan to watch him compete in the trampoline event for Team USA.

The worldwide stage at the center of the Rio Gymnastics Arena was a long way from Logan's description of how he started on the trampoline.

"I wouldn't stop jumping on the beds, so my parents gave me a backyard trampoline for my seventh birthday," he said. "I immediately started doing crazy tricks, so they signed me up for lessons as a safety precaution."

Years after those lessons, and many levels of competitions and awards later, Nancy talked with Patch.com long distance from Rio over Facebook to share her experience of watching her son take the national stage.

While waiting in line at the Rio Olympic Arena along with thousands of people from all over the world to watch her son compete in the Olympic trampoline event, Nancy's first thought was “what all moms of Olympic trampoline competitors think.”

First, the agony of hoping he would complete the 20 required skills, and second that he would keep the best form ever but her resounding thought was, “Please Lord, just keep him safe.”

While Logan was warming up, Nancy described her mind as filled with thoughts of her childhood in Montgomery, New York, and the first-ever televised Summer Olympic games in Rome in 1960 when ordinary athletes first became national heroes. According to Nancy, in the 1960s, an Olympian was comparable to a movie star.

“That summer, we all became aware of Olympic athletes like Cassius Clay and Wilma Rudolph, but I certainly had never even considered the idea of meeting (or knowing) an Olympian,” she said.

On waiting for Logan's event, she described her thoughts.

“My mind was racing, my heart was pounding, my eyes were misting and it was GO TIME," she said. "My handsome, smiling athlete looked so sharp in his red, white and blue competition gear.”

She watched Logan hop up on the edge of the trampoline to the cheering crowd.

“There was a thunderous roar of the crowd as the announcer called out his name, representing the United States of America,” she said. “To hear those words filling the Olympic area was an incredible rush of pride.”

Nancy "held her breath" through the duration of his two routines.

“When he was done, I knew that he had represented his country in a stellar manner,” she said. “(Logan) represented his sport in a most positive light on the world’s biggest stage.”

READ: More than Medals: Local Rancho Santa Margarita Gymnastics Coach Soars at 2016 Olympics

The pride on her face and in her words speaks volumes for all parents of athletes of all ages.

“This will go down as my proudest Mama moment,” she said of her son’s accomplishments.

Whether your young athlete is in beginning tumbling or a teenager building dreams of competing for a spot on the Olympic team, parents like Nancy Dooley have the unique perspective of seeing their young athlete through years of competition to their ultimate goal.

A mother’s nerves never go away. Sooner or later, you just have to let go and let them fly.