At Olympic Team Trials, U.S.A. Gymnastics Gets Warm and Fuzzy
Beacon, a golden retriever, began working with U.S.A. Gymnastics last year as part of the organization’s efforts to transform the sport’s toxic culture. More dogs quickly followed.
By Juliet Macur and
![At the U.S. National Gymnastics Championships in Fort Worth this year, nearly 20 dog-and-handler teams were available to athletes.](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2024/06/28/multimedia/28nat-oly-dog-09-gwpb/28nat-oly-dog-09-gwpb-thumbLarge.jpg?auto=webp)
![At the U.S. National Gymnastics Championships in Fort Worth this year, nearly 20 dog-and-handler teams were available to athletes.](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2024/06/28/multimedia/28nat-oly-dog-09-gwpb/28nat-oly-dog-09-gwpb-threeByTwoMediumAt2X.jpg?auto=webp)