McKayla Maroney went from an unknown 16-year old to an Olympic gold medalist practically overnight, and her parents are making sure their daughter is protected now that she's an Internet sensation and appearing on popular talk shows.

"We have hired specialist security guards to make sure McKayla is never on her own," Maroney's mom, Erin, told the Daily Mail. "We don't want another Shawn Johnson situation to happen."

Erin Maroney was referring to former Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson being haunted by a stalker shortly after her success at the Beijing Olympics. The fear is that the same could happen to Maroney, who played a vital role in helping the U.S. women's gymnastics team capture overall gold at the London Games.

Wait. A gymnast's parents going overboard. That doesn't happen ever.

It's not easy being a young, female athlete. And the chance of Maroney getting back to a normal lifestyle back home in Long Beach, Calif., isn't likely. At least she has four others who know exactly what she's going through. Aka "The Fierce Five."

"We know there are some fanatical people out there," Erin Maroney said. "We've had prom date requests, you name it. But McKayla handles it great. She just rolls her eyes at it."

McKayla rolling her eyes? That's hard to picture.