Entertainment

Gold Medalist Liukin Arrives Home

Slideshow: Nastia Liukin's Triumph

PARKER (CBS 11 News/ AP) ― Amid deafening screams, several hundred people welcomed Olympic gold medalist Nastia Liukin arrived at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport at 4 p.m. Thursday afternoon.

The flag-waving crowd included gymnasts she trains with, pint-sized fans and fellow gold medalist and friend Carly Patterson, who trained at the same gym.

When Nastia's plane touched down, a special water cannon greeted her.

"I was not expecting anything like this. I thought it was going to be a few girls from the gym and coaches," said Liukin, who was wearing a dark blue T-shirt with Chinese letters, a pair of jeans and white sneakers.

Among her numerous exuberant fans at the airport was a teenage boy who held a sign asking if she would marry him.

During the news conference someone shouted "Do you have a boyfriend?" She answered "no" with a smile. Her mother them told the fan he'll have to make an appointment.

The 18-year-old champion from Parker said she plans to spend time with friends and family and her grandparents, who came in from Russia, before she goes on tour Sept. 1.

The tour, titled The 2008 Tour of Gymnastics Superstars, will feature Liukin and other national Olympic medalists. The tour will be at the American Airlines Center on Oct. 11 at 5 p.m.

The Mayor of Paker announced an official welcome-home parade will be on August 30 at 9 a.m. More details will be released soon. The parade had been set for Saturday, August 23, but city officials postponed it because of the heavy rains in Parker this week.

Liukin has walked away with five medals total during her time in Beijing, tying the United States' record for a single Olympics. The 18-year-old won the gold medal in the women's all-around gymnastics competition, silver medals in balance beam and uneven bars, and the bronze medal in floor exercise. She also shared the silver medal for the women's team gymnastics competition.

America is leaving Beijing with 10 gymnastics medals total, eight of which were received by the women.

"It just shows how strong we are," said Liukin. "We went out there and showed we are the best. Going 1-2 in the all-around, that's never been done by the United States. The Americans have never had 1-2 on beam before either. And 2-3 on floor isn't too bad."

"It's definitely been a very successful Olympics for us," Liukin continued.

These medals give the Liukin family some well-deserved bragging rights. Nastia's father and coach, Valeri Liukin, won four medals of his own in 1988, two gold medals and two silver.

Now, Liukin must decide what to do next. These days, it is rare to see a female gymnast compete in back-to-back Olympics. However, Liukin said, "I'd love to stay around. Gymnastics has meant so much to me. I'm going to be busy, but I'd love to keep going."

When asked about the tiebreaker controversy, Liukin said that all she could do was focus on the competition. "The rules are the rules and you have to play by the rules," she said.

She had a similar response when asked to comment on allegations that some of the Chinese girls were underage, saying "We can only control our performances."

Her father and coach, Valeri Liukin, himself a 1988 double gold medalist for the Soviet Union, said of the age controversy, "We played fair at this Olympic games. ... If somebody cheated, shame on them."

Online records and newspaper accounts suggest three Chinese gymnasts, including He, may be underage, but Chinese passport records show they meet the age rules.

Patterson, who said she remembered watching Liukin train as she grew up, said she was in contact with her friend during the Olympics.

"I was so proud of her because she nailed all of her routines when it counted," Patterson said.

Nine-year-old Lily Pieper of Fort Worth had her mother bring her to the homecoming celebration.

"She was just always so good and she was from Texas. I thought that was pretty cool," said Pieper, who also does gymnastics.

(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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