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Stephen Nedoroscik just whipped off his glasses and earned himself another medal.
Stephen Nedoroscik.
Jamie Squire/Getty Images
Nedoroscik, 25, earned a bronze in the men’s pommel horse final on Saturday, Aug. 3 at Bercy Arena in Paris. The gymnast’s routine on the apparatus, his specialty, scored 15.300.
Ireland’s Rhys McClenaghan took the gold with a score of 15.533, while second place went to Nariman Kurbanov of Kazakhstan, who scored 15.433.
As per usual for the Massachusetts native, he performed his pommel horse routine sans eye glasses — the very accessory that inspired fans to nickname him “the Clark Kent of pommel horse” after his first competition in Paris went viral on social media.
He was supported on the floor by teammate Brody Malone, who ran around excitedly after Nedoroscik’s performance.
Before his turn, the pommel horse medalist looked cool and collected as he mentally prepared to compete. The moment was reminiscent of his warm-up routine caught on camera before Nedoroscik made his mark in Paris.
During a segment on TODAY, Nedoroscik explained that he was going through his “breathing exercises” when cameras caught him with his eyes closed and head titled back.
He added, “We always try to keep our heart rate down and through that five minutes I’m sitting there, I’m just visualizing my routine over and over … that’s all I’m doing in my head.”
The bronze win is Nedoroscik’s second after he and teammates Paul Juda, Fred Richard, Brody Malone and Asher Hong also took third on July 29 in the men’s gymnastics final. The team win marked the first medal for the United States in men’s gymnastics in 16 years.
After the team final, Nedoroscik told reporters, including PEOPLE, that it was the “greatest moment of my life.”
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