American Olympic gymnast–and, by all appearances, nice Jewish girl–Aly Raisman qualified for the womens individual all-around gymnastic final at the Olympics Sunday night (doing her routine to Hava Nagila, yet!). Big news–but apparently not as big as her parents’ reaction.

The video of her parents’ reactions as Raisman was doing her qualifier round has gone viral, and was posted here at Kveller as well as everywhere else in the world [ed. note: the IOC has blocked all footage on copyright grounds]. Raisman’s parents are transparently stressed out as they watch their daughter. They constantly fidget in their seats, looking, as one commentator noted, as though they were in dire need of a restroom. They move back and forth as though being shaken in a kaleidoscope, their eyes 100% trained on their daughter. They mumble and mutter encouragements (possibly dropping one f-bomb) in a Tourettes-like stream of words. Vanity Fair called their parental reactions “hilarious” and “SNL-worthy.” When watching them, anyone can see that they are clearly completely focused on and invested in their 18-year-old daughter’s performance, finally letting loose with a relieved yell at the end of the routine (thank you, Mr. Raisman). Read the rest of this entry →

• Posted in Parenting
• Tags: aly raisman, featured, gymnastics, Jewish mother, olympics, stereotypes

Which Jewish parents are the biggest kvellers in America today? That would Lynn and Ricky Raisman, whose 18-year-old daughter Aly Raisman scored one of the two American spots to contend for the all-around title in women’s gymnastics at the London Olympics yesterday. Not only did their daughter score high enough to replace the reigning world champion, Jordyn Wieber, who was a heavy favorite for a gold medal, she performed her floor routine to Hava Nagila. So much nachas!

But the best thing to come out of all of this does not even feature Aly–it’s all about her parents. One genius videographer chose to zoom in on the Raismans during Aly’s bar routine, and the footage that came out of it is pure (Olympic) gold. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to have your child compete in the Olympics, check it out:

To see her parents in a slightly calmer light, check out this interview with them for NESN.com, in which the key to Raisman’s success is revealed: Mommy & Me gymnastics classes at age 2.

• Posted in Parenting
• Tags: gymnastics, olympics, sports