PARIS (AP) — Stephen Nedoroscik is leaning into his newfound stardom as a geeky, bespectacled, Rubik’s Cube-solving video gamer who just won two bronze medals at the Paris Olympics . “It’s still just surreal to me. I wake up in the morning, I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m a two-time Olympic medalist!' It is so cool,” he told The Associated Press.
With both medals hanging around his neck, he beamed and laughed as he marveled at his rise to fame and the attention his specialty in gymnastics is receiving. The 25-year-old U.S.
gymnast finished third in the pommel horse on Saturday, five days after helping the American men’s team earn bronze — its first Olympic medal in 16 years. Along the way, he’s captured the hearts of Olympics viewers with his endearing personality and nerdy tendencies. Images and clips of Nedoroscik removing his glasses and centering himself before hopping on the pommel horse for a focused routine have gone viral.
The memes and tweets have likened him to Clark Kent taking off his glasses and transforming into a hero. “The memes are hilarious and I’m loving them all,” he said. Internet fodder aside, Nedoroscik and his eyeglasses have brought visibility to an eye condition called coloboma, which occurs when part of the tissue that makes up the eye is missing.
Fans have approached him thanking him for being a role model for children who need to wear glasses. “Even just last week, for the first time, I met someone else who has the same ey.