Olympics wunderkind Laurie Hernandez was a celebrity in her own right at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards. She along with her Final Five teammates—sans Gabby Douglas, had the honor of presenting the award for Best Female Artist, which Beyoncé won before embracing each member. “I just hugged Beyoncé,” wrote Hernandez on Twitter.
@lzhernandez02 most iconic part of the vmas you two are my actual faves pic.twitter.com/tqr1XDKMhu
— Gymnast Relate (@gymnastrelate) August 29, 2016
For Hernandez, the glory didn’t stop there. Not only did the 17-year-old Olympic medalist get to experience the magic of meeting and hugging one of our beloved musical icons, but she got to share time and space with today’s top celebrities and recording artists.
A photo posted by Laurie Hernandez (@lauriehernandez_) on
“I love Kanye more than Kanye loves Kanye,” she quipped on Instagram, under an usie with Kanye West himself. And if you look closely, you’ll see the rapper on the verge of cracking—you guessed it—a smile, a nearly impossible feat in the era of Yeezy.
I love Kanye more than Kanye loves Kanye pic.twitter.com/4fEuzLmYdX
— Laurie Hernandez ? (@lzhernandez02) August 29, 2016
Hernandez along with her equally stellar teammates went on to commemorate the evening with all the star-studded usies a teenage girl can handle. From Kim Kardashian to Ariana Grande to DJ Khaled, Laurie showed up and showed out with all her favorite celebs.
Pt. 2😊 pic.twitter.com/chFEH6u24E
— Laurie Hernandez ? (@lzhernandez02) August 29, 2016