Lately, in the world of gymnastics, everyone seems to be focusing on the indestructible USA women's gymnastics team. And how could they not? With remarkable talents, including floor connoisseur Laurie Hernandez, returning Olympic qualifier Aly Reisman and arguably the strongest gymnast in the world, Simone Biles, this group deserves to be the talk of the town.

While I, along with the rest of the world, am in awe of this remarkable Olympic lineup, I do believe they are distracting from one of gymnastics' most incredible and inspirational athletes. The athlete that I am referring to is one Oksana Chusovitina, a 41-year-old gymnast from Uzbekistan.

This 5 foot, 97-pound powerhouse is not only extremely talented, but is also the oldest female gymnast to ever compete at the Olympic games. Her first Olympic trial took place 24 years ago when she was just 17 years of age. This veteran is also a proven champion who has won two medals at the Olympics, a gold medal in the 1992 Barcelona Games and a silver medal in the 2008 Beijing games.

With the minimal age being 16 to compete, Chusovitina is around two times older than most of her competition. Not to mention that she has a 17-year-old son named Alisha who is similar in age to most of her opponents. Chusovitina, in an interview with Associated Press, even jokes about the huge gap between her and her competitors, quipping that, "It's a pity there are no points for age."

Chusovitina is not intimidated by the younger Olympians, however. When asked how she felt about the distinct age difference, she stated that, "On the podium, everyone is the same whether you are 40 or 16. You have to go out and do your routine and your jumps." This certainly implies that she is not worried about what her competition is doing. She wants to focus on herself and herself only.

When I first heard about this woman, I was both intrigued and perplexed. I gave her kudos for pushing her body to perform at such a high level, but I also wondered why she wished to compete when it seemed highly unlikely that she would medal. Don't get me wrong, I have seen her perform and find her extraordinarily talented. But, in comparison to her younger competition, her body is likely less capable of pulling off difficult routines.

So what motivates her to keep going? In another statement from her interview with Associated Press, she says it is because, "I love this sport, I love training, I am always eager to train." Essentially, she continues competing because she adores gymnastics, not because she is pining for another title.

This is a sentiment very rarely expressed in the Olympic world. In my opinion, most athletes today feel they need to reign victorious in order to validate the effort they put into their sport. In gymnastic legend Shawn Johnson's YouTube video called, "I AM SECOND," this belief is portrayed to the utmost extreme. In the video, Johnson claims that she gave one of the best routines of her life before earning a silver medal at the Olympic Games. Instead of reveling in that moment, she claims she felt like a disappointment because she didn't live up to her fans' high expectations.

It is moments like these that completely aggravate me about the world of sports. While Johnson herself recognizes the insanity of the pressure that was put on her, she also emphasizes that society is far too critical of those who don't come out number one. It is quite alarming that we live in a world that makes us feel like a failure if we are not the best at something. What happened to engaging in activities simply because we enjoy them? Why must everything always be about an end goal?

That is why I love it when individuals like Chusovitina come to the forefront. Because of the determination and plain adoration she has for gymnastics, she is a wonderful role model for all athletes. She teaches us to live in the moment, ignore expectations and just have fun. She teaches us that, while prizes, decorations and awards are wonderful to receive, it is the feeling we get while performing our crafts that should motivate us to keep moving forward.

It is for all of these reasons that I will be cheering on Oksana Chusovitina throughout the remainder of these Olympic Games. While I am Team USA all the way, it is hard to be in opposition to this inspiring Uzbekistani marvel. Even if this woman does not return home with a medal, I hope that she walks away from these Olympics proud of how she has inspired me and, I hope, many other people.