The Sweet Story of the "Good Luck Charm" Hoda Kotb Brought to the Gymnastics Balance Beam Final
Hoda Kotb is filling may roles at the Tokyo Olympics: NBC correspondent, devoted fan, and surrogate mom to America's athletes.
Kotb has been particularly invested in the gymnastics events and was on hand to cheer for team USA during the balance beam finals Tuesday. The mother-of-two could be seen waving an item of clothing around in the air.
During an interview with the team, Kotb revealed that she was brandishing an extra-special good-luck charm: a piece from her daughter Haley Joy's wardrobe.
"So, this is what I was waving. This is my daughter's dress. She put it in my luggage for good luck, so I took it to the meet, and I just started twirling it around and it gave me good luck for all of you," she explained, earning a collective "aww" from the gymnasts.
Kotb shared a photo of the star-studded dress on Instagram last week. "When ur daughter packs one of her dresses in your bag!" she wrote alongside the snap.
And it worked! Texas' Simone Biles came back from a case of "the twisties" to earn bronze in beam that day.
Speaking with her friend and co-host Jenna Bush Hager on Today last week, Kotb shared that the patriotic star-patterned dress was one of a few personal items four-year-old Haley Joy snuck into her mom's suitcase.
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"She actually packed three of her dresses in my luggage, a pair of cat socks, and her pjs," she told Bush Hager. "So, I have like a whole Haley wardrobe that's there. She's adorable, she's hilarious."
Haley is definitely someone you want on your team!
