Published: August 25, 2008 05:02 pm      

Returning Olympian receives warm reception

Back from Beijing

LIZTON — Welcome home, Bridget Sloan.

That’s the message hundreds of American flag-waving supporters gathered to convey Sunday, as the Olympic gymnast paraded from her hometown of Pittsboro to Lizton, silver medal swinging from her 4-foot-11-inch frame.

Passersby waved and honked as Sloan’s convertible made its way to Tri-West High School, where an eager crowd of family, friends, and fans had already gathered in the gymnasium to catch a glimpse of the 16-year-old silver medalist.

For Sloan, it was an unforgettable experience.

“Now I really know what it feels like to be a superstar,” she said. “It’s all new to me. At first, I wondered why people would want my autograph, then it kind of hit me, I did just go to the Olympics.”

Not many freshmen can claim to be the most well-known student in high school, but the standing ovation Sloan received upon entering the Tri-West gymnasium Sunday suggested that she is just that.

“It’s just incredible,” Sloan said. “This is a really small town, so having them come and greet me was just a dream come true. I couldn’t ask for much more.”

Standing at a podium at mid-court, the gymnast’s parents, Jeff and Mary Sloan, started by thanking the community for helping enable them to share their daughter’s Olympic dream. Through a fundraiser breakfast and silent auction in early August, supporters of the Sloans raised $24,000 to help cover the family’s cost to China.

USA Gymnastics President Steve Penny and coach Marvin Sharp addressed the crowd before Sloan stepped to the microphone to offer her words of thanks to the community. As the famous Olympic theme played, the crowd was treated to a slideshow depicting Sloan from her early days of gymnastics to her defining moment on the medal stand in Beijing.

“I’ve changed a lot,” Sloan said. “I look so young in those pictures. I’ve just grown up a lot in the past couple of months.”

After the slideshow, Sloan mingled through the crowd of adoring fans. Perhaps the most common question asked of her was also the most obvious — what was China like?

“It’s China, it’s a lot different,” Sloan said. “There are about 18 million people in one city. The crowd was really great. Of course, when China would perform they would get a lot louder, but there was no booing and no disrespect toward anybody.”

After fielding a barrage of China-related inquiries, Sloan responded to another question burning the minds of her supporters — given the opportunity, will she return in 2012 for an encore Olympic appearance in London?

“I’ve been thinking about it, but I don’t really know what I’m going to do yet,” Sloan said. “I’ve heard London’s really nice, and I’ve been there once, so we’ll see.”

Kassie Sloan, Bridget’s 22-year-old sister and best friend, was more direct:

“China was nice, but I could go for London,” she said.

kevin.leibrock@flyergroup.com