Hezly Rivera

Hezly Rivera (born June 4, 2008) is an American artistic gymnast. She was a member of the silver medal-winning team at the 2023 Junior World Championships. Additionally she is the 2023 Junior World silver medalist on floor exercise. She was named to the team that will represent the United States at the 2024 Summer Olympics, making her the youngest athlete in the U.S. delegation.

Early life
Rivera was born in Hackensack, New Jersey in 2008 to Heidy Ruiz and Henry Rivera, an engineer originally from the Dominican Republic. She was raised in nearby Oradell and has two siblings.

2022
Rivera competed at the 2022 Winter Cup where she placed third in the all-around. As a result, she was selected to compete at the DTB Pokal Team Challenge. While there she helped the USA win gold.

In July Rivera competed at the U.S. Classic where she finished second in the all-around behind Jayla Hang. Additionally she won gold on balance beam, silver on floor exercise, and finished fourth on vault. The following month Rivera competed at the National Championships where she finished sixth in the all-around and won bronze on floor exercise.

2023
Rivera competed at the 2023 Winter Cup where she won the all-around competition. Additionally she placed first on balance beam and floor exercise. As a result, on winning the competition, Rivera was named to the team to compete at the 2023 Junior World Championships.

On the first day of the Junior World Championships Rivera helped the USA finish second behind Japan. However, during the vault rotation Rivera's hand slipped on the vaulting table resulting in her scoring a 0 on the apparatus and therefore not qualifying for the all-around final. She did qualify for the uneven bars and floor exercise finals. During event finals Rivera placed eighth on uneven bars but won silver on floor exercise behind Italian Giulia Perotti.

2024
At 15, Rivera became age-eligible for senior level competition in 2024. She made her debut at the 2024 Winter Cup where she placed third in the all-around. She made her international debut at the City of Jesolo Trophy where she helped the USA win bronze behind Italy and Brazil. At the National Championships Rivera placed sixth in the all-around. As a result she qualified to the Olympic Trials.

At the Olympic Trials Rivera placed fifth in the all-around, first on balance beam, fourth on uneven bars, and eighth on floor exercise. As a result she was selected to represent the United States at the 2024 Summer Olympics alongside Simone Biles, Jade Carey, Jordan Chiles, and Sunisa Lee.