The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris have been the talk of the world this week, and many amazing athletes have been making history.
In the US, we saw the women’s gymnastics team win gold on their “redemption tour,” and Simone Biles became the most accomplished US gymnast in Olympic history.
And the team is grateful for a new member who is different but very important: a therapy dog called Beacon!
Beacon, a golden retriever who is 4 years old, is the first therapy dog for USA Gymnastics. He was very important this year in making sure the athletes stayed cool during the Olympic trials.
A Pup in 2020
According to USA Today, Beacon’s owner Tracey Callahan Molnar got him as a baby in 2020, after her old dog Tulsa died. Molnar thought Beacon might be able to become a therapy dog like Tulsa did when she saw how much he loved people and wanted to be with them.
Lucky for Molnar, Caroline Hunt, who is in charge of rhythmic gymnastics at USA Gymnastics, is friends with her. Hunt was thinking about adding a pet therapy program to USAG.
The program began in February 2023 at an Indianapolis rhythmic gymnastics center with dogs as therapy dogs. Despite initial doubts, the program turned out to be good for the rivals’ mental health.
Before Competition
“They could see the value,” Molnar told USA Today. “They heard their gymnasts or daughters talk about how much better and calmer they felt before the competition, and they said it was because they got to spend time with the therapy dogs before the competition.”
Beacon and the growing therapy dog program got a lot of attention across the country after he calmed down the gymnasts and coaches during the Olympic trials in June. These were the important events where athletes fought to get spots on Team USA.
Competitors could visit Beacon and his fellow therapy dogs before and after the trials. The dogs were happy to see them. People who spend time with therapy dogs report feeling less stressed and anxious. As Beacon’s owner put it, people who come to him for comfort “absorb the stress.”
He told ESPN, “I watch the women, and if they get excited when they see him, I’ll walk toward them.” “Someone called him tonight or just went up to him on their own… He can tell when someone is stressed and will go straight to them.
It took all day for the golden retriever to comfort the dancers, but she said it was worth it because “I think we did important work.” For some of the gymnasts, it was a rough night. I think Beacon helped enjoy the good things and be there for the tough times.
There is more and more talk about the mental health of Olympic athletes, especially dancers, which led to the creation of the therapy dog program. Gymnastics can be hard on the mind as well as the body, and a lot of the people who want to do it are young teenage girls. A lot of gymnasts say that their teachers hurt them emotionally and verbally.
But in the past few years, more athletes and trainers have put mental health first. One famous example is Olympic legend Simone Biles, who missed most of her events at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 because she was having a mental block called the “twisties.”
CEO of USAG, Jill Geer, told USA Today, “Over the last few years, our athletes have consistently told us that what they would like more of is mental health support as well as nutritional support.”
As three-time Olympian and coach Sam Mikulak told the New York Times, “They’ve turned everything around and now they are clearly thinking, ‘What does the athlete need?'” How nice that is.
A lot of people have seen pictures and videos of Beacon comforting gymnasts since the Olympic trials. He has become the furry face of how attitudes are changing in the sport. In the program, there are other service dogs, but he’s become the big star.
“There are a few other dogs, but Beacon is the real star.” “He is the True North of this program,” Geer said. “I joke that Beacon needs an agent because more people want to work with him than any other athlete we know of.”
The other athletes suggested that he be called CHO, which stands for “Chief Happiness Officer.” He has been called the team’s MVP, which stands for “Most Valuable Pup.”
Hearing some athletes talk about it is a good way to take your mind off of things. “It takes their minds off of how stressful their competition is,” she told KXAN.
Even though he was very well-known, Beacon couldn’t go to Paris with Team USA. People tried, but it just wasn’t doable. They said on Instagram that they would be “cheering our Olympians on from California.”
What a great dog! Being there to keep these gymnasts quiet and collected is a very important job, and Beacon is no doubt a big reason why Team USA won this year.
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