Stephen Nedoroscik Explains His Viral ‘Sleeping’ Meme

Nicknamed Clark Kent and Captain America by fans, Nedoroscik, who became an overnight internet sensation, made history by becoming only the second American man in four decades to win a medal in the pommel horse event at the Paris Games.

His distinctive look—complete with glasses—quickly captivated the internet. In fact, it didn’t take long for an eyewear brand to swoop in and sign him to an endorsement deal.

Following the 2024 Paris Olympics, Stephen Nedoroscik appeared on “The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon,” where he discussed the viral memes, what it was like to compete in the Olympic Games, and his love for solving Rubik’s Cubes.

For anyone who’s been living under a rock lately, a meme of the “Pommel Horse Guy” blew up online, showing Stephen Nedoroscik looking like he was catching some Z’s while waiting for his turn in the Men’s Gymnastics competition.

Naturally, Jimmy Fallon had to ask about it. “Are you asleep here, or what were you doing?” the late-night talk show host asked as they flashed a photo of the meme on the screen.

“Yeah, so after a really long day like that, where I’m waiting around five hours to finally compete, we get there earlier and then warm up and then march out and compete, so it was like five hours or so,” he explained of a typical day at the Olympics. “So finally, when we got to horse, I needed to calm down.”

“So what I’m doing there is I’m tilting my head back and doing my breathing exercises and visualizing like a lot, like a hundred times,” he added of his pre-routine ritual.

Rubik’s cubes might seem like a challenge for the geniuses, but Stephen Nedoroscik made it look like a breeze. This tricky six-sided puzzle, with its colorful squares, has stumped many, but not the Pommel Horse Guy. He solved it in a jaw-dropping 15.42 seconds on the late-night show, leaving Jimmy Fallon and his audiences impressed.

He also completed one in under 10 seconds on the day of the Olympics competition earlier this month. “I love to solve it – it’s just fun,” he said on the “TODAY” show.

“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.”

Pommel Horse Guy has crossed eyes, which are known as strabismus in medical terms. He opened up about it on TikTok.

According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, strabismus occurs when an issue with the eye muscles causes the eyes to misalign and point in different directions. “A lot of people who have this condition have a sense of embarrassment,” Dr. Dean Cestari, director of adult strabismus at Mass Eye and Ear told the “TODAY” show. “They feel disfigured. It profoundly affects people in many, many different ways.”

But thanks to Nedoroscik and his glasses, he is inspiring the next generation and showing them that it’s okay to wear specs.  “I’m representing people that wear glasses well,” the Olympian said.

USA Gymnastics even shared a heartwarming photo of Nedoroscik meeting a young fan with the same eye condition, calling it a “really, really special moment.”

Fans flooded the comments section, thanking the Olympian for “being himself.”

“Thank you. Just thank you. For being yourself. Letting your geek show and not being ashamed of it. For being natural and open and just plain nice,” one social media user said. “Thank you for representing our country, and doing it proudly and exceptionally. Thank you for showing that when we dedicate ourselves to something with all we have, it pays off. You changed all of us – individually and as a country – for the better. THANK YOU,” they added.

“He single-handedly made nerd guys hot again,” another said.

“He came, he saw, he didn’t see, he conquered,” a third wrote.