Dominique Dawes Is Not Only An Olympian And Investor, She’s Also The Founder Of A Youth Gymnastics Academy – AfroTech

Decorated gymnast Dominique Dawes has always understood the power of sports.

It’s what drove her interest in investing in two professional sports teams. Dawes has been a limited partner in the National Women’s Soccer League’s Washington Spirit team since joining an ownership group of more than 30 notable names in 2021, according to a press release. In 2024, Dawes was announced as one of the four newest limited partners in the Atlanta Falcons, joining Spelman College Interim President and former Walgreens CEO Rosalind Brewer, award-winning producer Will Packer, and venture capitalist Rashaun Williams, ESPN reports.

For Dawes, a stake in professional sports is all about moving the community forward.

“I believe in the power of sports. I don’t think sports is about getting to the Super Bowl and winning it all, or getting to the Olympics and winning it all. It really is a community affair. It really impacts a community in a positive way: the fans, the management, the athletes, the ownership truly change a community, and I see that with the Atlanta Falcons. I see that with the Washington Spirit,” she told AFROTECH™. “And I’ve been thrilled to be able to invest in these two amazing entities because it’s not just about what’s happening on the field, but it’s also the community.”

“It’s about encouraging young girls to get into the sport of women’s soccer. It’s about encouraging young boys to pursue football. And it’s been wonderful how I’ve seen lives shaped, businesses transformed through all of this … I look forward to investing in other professional sports teams as well,” she added.

Dawes’ investment in Atlanta’s sports industry has been a full circle moment for the athlete. In 1996, she was a member of the “Magnificent Seven” team at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta, which won a gold medal. She also made history as the first Black gymnast to win an individual Olympic medal, earning bronze in the floor exercise, according to a biography shared by the Maryland Women’s Hall of Fame.

“That was my second Olympic Games. That was eighteen years ago. I was blessed to be a part of the first-ever gymnastics team to win a gold. We became known as the ‘Magnificent Seven,’ and still to this day, I get stopped by people saying they remember exactly where they were thirty years ago,” she recalled.

Dawes made three appearances in the Olympic Games as a gymnast, then retired after the 2000 Olympics. While her story has been marked by various triumphs, it also includes moments of pain that she has turned into purpose. Dawes is a native of Spring, MD, and found her love for gymnastics at the tender age of six. She had immediate admiration for the sport, and recalls being naturally athletic and competitive. Gymnastics was her haven and helped her overcome a rough childhood upbringing.

“[I] didn’t have a home that was filled with a lot of love. There was a great deal of abuse that I witnessed and heard. And the sport of gymnastics, I think, became a bit of a safe haven for me where I could express myself on the balance beam, on the floor exercise, on the vault, I could challenge myself, and I could work hard,” she explained.

Dominique Dawes Academy

Dawes wanted to create a safe environment for the next generation of gymnasts, so she launched the gymnastics school, Dominique Dawes Academy. The facilities have their own coach training and certification program based on USA Gymnastics’ standards, according to Adam Zeitsiff, the CEO of the Dominique Dawes Academy. Coaches are continuously trained, primarily in safety and spotting, as well as how to engage with children to ensure they feel welcome.

“The culture and the abuse and the harsh environment is what I experienced in gymnastics for eighteen years,” she explained. “My husband encouraged me [to] start the Academy. Do things the right way.”

The academy prioritizes physical literacy through gymnastics and Ninja classes for children ages 18 months through the teenage years while nurturing confidence, according to its website.

The academy’s seven locations can accommodate between 1,300 and 1,800 students weekly, according to Zeitsiff. The most recent expansion is in Jersey Village, marking the academy’s first Texas location. The grand opening was Saturday, May 30.

“Kids that walk through our doors are excited to be here because they love the coaches on the floor, because they feel that love from the coaches, and they leave smiling and sweating,” Dawes said.

Zeitsiff described the facilities as state-of-the-art and pointed out features such as cameras that allow parents to monitor their children, the latest sound technology for age-separated zones, and a mobile app used to make payments, find a class, or book a day camp, Kids’ Night Out, open gym, or birthday party.

“How do we fulfill that model that we talked about: the happy athlete and the strong kids, but also [make it] fun so they walk away sweating and smiling,” Zeitsiff told AFROTECH™.

There are plans to expand to Spring, TX, this year and open at least 40 or 50 more academies in the next five years.