McKayla Maroney was born and raised in California. The daughter of Mike and Erin Maroney, she was home-schooled so that she could train as an elite gymnast. She started her senior career in 2011 at the age of 15. At that year's world championships, Maroney won gold medals in the team and vault competitions. She was then named to the 2012 U.S. Olympic team and helped the Americans win the team gold medal. In the vault competition, she won the silver medal, and her look of disappointment while standing on the podium was photographed and became an Internet meme. Maroney made her acting debut in the series Hart of Dixie (2011) later in 2012.