Gymnast Nastia Liukin Reveals Heartwarming Advice From Kobe Bryant

Gymnast Nastia Liukin is sharing some advice that she received from the late Kobe Bryant.

Although the NBA legend passed away at age 41 in a 2020 helicopter crash, the Russian-born former American artistic gymnast revealed that the late athlete still had a tremendous influence on her life. At the Cannes Lions Festival in France on Tuesday, she revealed that he was one of the primary factors that drove her decision to shift from Olympics gymnast to entrepreneur.

On Tuesday, Nastia Liukin attended the Stagwell's Sports Beach activation at the Cannes Lions Festival in Southern France. While there, she talked to Page Six about her transition from gymnast to entrepreneur, stating that "It was actually Kobe" who gave her the idea to go into business and referred to the late athlete as her "mentor."

“He always said that, ‘You have this idea in your head that you’re the girl in the pink leotard and the scrunchie — and you are so much more than that,’” she explained. Although she retired from gymnastics over a decade ago, she has since gone on to launch a clothing line and a skincare line. She has also appeared on reality shows like "Dancing With The Stars" and "Special Forces: World's Toughest Test."

The five-time Olympic medalist likes to keep herself busy and even works as an NBC Sports Olympics analyst. She revealed that it was Kobe's advice that motivated her to stop competing and start pursuing other ways to reach her audience. “He helped me believe [in myself] because he’s like, ‘If you don’t believe that, who else is going to believe that?’” she recalled. “[Gymnastics is] not something that defines me. And I think realizing that it’s something I can be proud of… but it’s like a job title or a relationship, those things don’t define who we are as humans.”

Although she has competed in gymnastics from a very young age, the 2012 Olympic trials compelled her to make a clean break with the sport after "falling flat" on her face during one event. “It was four years after I won the Olympics and trying to make my second Olympic team. And at the Olympic trials, I fell flat on my face," she recalled. "Laying on that mat, I remembered thinking, ‘OK, that dream is over.’”

She explained that she had failed to find the grip on the high bar and fell face-first on the mat during the competition, which just so happened to be televised. “My parents always said, ‘No matter what you do, always just finish what you started.’ So I got back up and finished my routine, landed on my feet in my dismount,” she recalled, adding, “And for the very first time in my life in my entire career, I had a standing ovation for the worst routine of my entire life.”

The experience led Nastia to realize that she was more than just how well she performed. “I’m like, ‘OK, I’m not defined by any placement, any routine, any of those things,’” she said. “It kind of really helped me … that was my last competition of my whole career and being able to move forward with life, knowing that people are still going to love you even if you fall on your face or you’re not a gymnast anymore.”

On Tuesday, Nastia participated in a Cannes Lions panel titled “Axios Presents: Women in Sports Broadcasting and the Road to 2024,” which featured female sportscasters like NBC Sports’ Maria Taylor and ESPN’s Holly Rowe, among others.

On Monday night, the 33-year-old former athlete took to Instagram to share a few photos of her standing along the beach in Cannes in a backless white dress that featured spaghetti straps and a high slit that ran up to her knee. She accessorized her look with dark sunglasses, a pink purse, and open-toe sandals.

“So excited to be at @cannes_lions with @stagwellglobal this week! The energy here is so special, and seeing all of the world’s leading brands activate in the most creative ways is incredibly inspiring,” she wrote in the caption. “I’ll be speaking on panels this week about sports marketing and influencer marketing, and I can’t wait to learn from industry leaders and the world’s most creative marketers!!”