U.S. gymnast Stephen Nedoroscik wears glasses, which seems to be a rarity among athletes going for the gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
He takes them off when he competes on the pommel horse — his only event and a dazzling routine that helped Team USA’s men's gymnastics team win the bronze medal in the team final on Monday, July 29.
Nedoroscik’s transformation from a mild-mannered bespectacled mechanical engineer on the sidelines to powerful athlete defying gravity on the pommel horse is drawing comparisons to Clark Kent turning into Superman when he removes his glasses.
“I think they’re awesome,” Nedoroscik, 25, said of the memes during a TODAY segment that aired on Tuesday, July 30.
“I’m representing people that wear glasses well.”
Get Tri-state area news delivered to your inbox. Sign up for NBC New York's News Headlines newsletter.
The gymnast talked with TODAY co-anchor Hoda Kotb while wearing her sunglasses because of an eye sensitivity — a condition he’s talked about on social media.
Paris 2024 Summer Olympics and Paralympics
Watch all the action from the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games live on Peacock
Here’s what Nedoroscik has shared about his eyesight:
What he sees when he competes without glasses
“It’s not necessarily clear, but the thing about pommel horse is if I keep them on, they’re gonna fly somewhere,” Nedoroscik told TODAY about his preference to take off his glasses.
“When I go up on the pommel horse, it’s all about feeling the equipment. I don’t even really see when I’m doing my gymnastics. It’s all in the hands — I can feel everything.”
He has strabismus
Nedoroscik has crossed eyes — or strabismus, the medical term for the condition, he revealed on TikTok.
It happens when a problem affects eye muscles, causing the eyes to not line up properly and point in different directions, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology.
Strabismus usually develops in infants and kids under 3, but it can also start later in life, the American Optometric Association notes.
People with strabismus can lose depth perception, or develop blurry or double vision. Glasses or contacts can help patients see better. Other treatment options include surgery, eye muscle exercises and prism lenses that help manage the misalignment of the eyes.
He has coloboma
This genetic condition happens when some of the tissue that makes up the eye is missing at birth, according to the National Eye Institute. One or both eyes could be affected.
There are different types of coloboma depending on which part of the eye is impacted. The missing tissue could involve the eyelid, lens, macula, optic nerve, retina or middle layer of the eye, the American Academy of Ophthalmology notes.
Nedoroscik has talked about living with coloboma on TikTok, explaining he’s photophobic, or light sensitive, because of it — perhaps why he borrowed Hoda's sunglasses.
Other symptoms include vision loss; not being able to see in a specific location, such as the upper part of the field of vision; or blindness.
There’s no cure, but glasses or contact lenses can help. Some patients may need low vision aids or surgery.
He sometimes wears sports goggles for ‘superstitious reasons’
They haven't made an appearance at the Olympics yet, but Nedoroscik began wearing the sports goggles his freshman year at Penn State. His college teammates called them “The Specs,” noting they were a Secret Santa gift that had no prescription lenses.
“They are simply for fun, kind of my trademark. I like to have fun out there,” Nedoroscik said in a 2022 video profile, adding he considers them a good luck charm. “From day one of competing with them, they had a little bit of magic to them.”
He sometimes uses them for comfort and “superstitious reasons,” rather than improving his eyesight, according to his official Olympics profile.
This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:
