Three-time Olympian and 1996 Olympic gold-medalist Dominique Dawes of Gaithersburg, Md., was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame as part of its Class of 2009 on May 30, 2009, at The Petroleum Club in Oklahoma City, Okla.
Dawes, a member of the "Magnificent Seven" – the only U.S. women’s team to win an Olympic team gold medal – also won a bronze medal on floor exercise in Atlanta, becoming the first African-American to win an individual event medal in gymnastics. She was the third U.S. female gymnast to compete in three Olympic Games.
Dawes is the second member of the "Magnificent SevenAca A to be inducted. Shannon Miller was honored as a member of the Class of 2006.
Other 2009 inductees included Olympic gold-medalist Vitaly Scherbo of Belarus, Romanian coach Ocatvian Belu, the late Olympic gold medalist Viktor Chukarin of Ukraine, and Olympic gold medalist Elvira Saadi of Uzbekistan. Sweden’s Margaret Sikkens Ahlquist, president of the International Gymnastics Federation’s Gymnastics for All Committee, received the International Order of Merit.