Gabby Douglas’ Olympic medal could be a golden opportunity for her broke mother. The gold-medal gymnast’s doting mom, Natalie Hawkins, has been struggling to make ends meet — and twice filed for bankruptcy — while her phenom daughter chased her Olympic dreams, according to federal court records.Okay, now check ABC News, "Missy Franklin Wants to Swim in College, Put Off Endorsement Fortunes." Franklin even turned down $100 thousand in Olympic prizewinnings to remain eligible for NCAA competition. And she personally dedicated her wins to the families of the Aurora shooting victims.
But since Gabby won the Olympics’ coveted individual all-around gymnastics competition, she’s become the darling of the United States and world — and is worth a potential $100 million-plus in endorsement deals.
Hawkins, a single mother with three other children, had been just 24 hours from foreclosure on the family’s Virginia Beach home in January when she sought protection under Chapter 13 bankruptcy, public records show.
She had a measly $500 in the bank and was $80,000 in debt when she filed the papers. The bulk of the debt was from a $150,000 mortgage on the townhouse where Gabby and her three older siblings lived for more than a decade.
Hawkins also owes $20,000 to trainers at Excalibur, a well-regarded Virginia gym whose staff was working with Gabby, according to its owners — although the mom disputes incurring the debt, the Virginia Pilot newspaper said.
But now that her 4-foot-11 golden-girl daughter has become the first African-American to grab the top medal, Hawkins could be on easy street.
Her 16-year-old has already landed on a Kellogg’s Corn Flakes box and will get $100,000 for appearing in the upcoming Kellogg’s Tour of Champs.
And Golden Gabby still has two more shots at medals — on the uneven bars today and the balance beam tomorrow.
I'm happy for both Douglas and Franklin. And I hope they continue to have great success.
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