t was three up and three down for Sam Mikulak this year. That's the number of all-around competitions he has entered this calendar year. Back in April, he brought home Big 10 and NCAA trophies, and now he gets to take home another one as the U.S. Championships all-around champion. Mikulak's first eleven events this weekend went down as he planned, all were [...more]
It's apparent we are starting to see the changing of the guards in terms of the hierarchy of men's gymnastics. Sam Mikulak, most gym fans' pick to win this weekend's U.S. Championships, did not disappoint. Perhaps it was the bat flying around the XL Center in Hartford which made Mikulak feel right at home, because he was certainly in the zone on Day 1. Last summer, [...more]
Indiana University junior Matthew Rusk completes his preview of the 2013 U.S. Championships with his profiles of Alex Naddour, John Orozco, Eddie Penev, Paul Ruggeri, Donnell Whittenburg and Brandon Wynn. This year's World Championships will feature six-man teams, but the competition will be comprised of only individual events and the all-around--no team competition this year. The selection committee, thus, will have to deal with the dynamic of choosing [...more]
For the fourth year-in-a-row, Matthew Rusk breaks down the top contenders to win the U.S. Championships, and those favored to earn spots on the 2013 World Team. In part one, Rusk takes a look at Jake Dalton, Adrian de los Angeles, Steven Legendre, Danell Leyva, Sam Mikulak and Akash Modi. The year after the Olympics is usually a rebuilding year that gives young upstarts a shot at contending for U.S. titles and earning opportunities to represent Team USA on the world stage. In 2009, Dalton and Leyva [...more]
Marvin Kimble put together two incredible days of powerhouse gymnastics, as he successfully defended his 2012 JO Nationals all-around championship. Day 1 was an incredible masterpiece, blowing up the scoreboard with a mind-boggling 94.05. Even Kohei Uchimura probably perked up after hearing the news. Day 2 was not quite as explosive, given the technical sequences format, but he performed the routines expertly to win the all-around by almost 7 points. Runner-up Yul Moldauer had a spectacular day, putting up a [...more]
I've often touted Event Finals at JO Nationals as being the perfect showcase for America's best junior club gymnasts. In fact, I've also clamored for this event to be televised by ESPN, much like their annual Little League World Series coverage. It's a production crew's dream. Historically, it has been eighteen gymnasts (Levels 9 & 10) on six events, America's best juniors being introduced one at a time and taking the podium alone. The whole event takes 90-120 minutes. America's perfect showcase has been kicked [...more]
They simply ran into a buzzsaw this weekend. Oklahoma (440.10), that is. Their gutsy performance at the 2013 NCAA Championships fell short, as Michigan put together two straight days of consistently outstanding gymnastics. Nearly matching their Friday night score of 443.85, the Wolverines (443.20) overwhelmed the field of six at the meet hosted by Penn State. Their opening salvo came on their first event, pommel horse (72.25), where they posted a meet high and sent an ominous sign [...more]
As most gymnastics fans like to see, the 2013 Winter Cup came down to the final event. Michigan's Adrian de los Angeles clung to a slim .35 lead over Olympian Jake Dalton. De los Angeles had a nice routine on PH (13.30), but struggled a bit with his dismount. No doubt tired at the end of his very long routine, his bobble was just enough [...more]
The results speak for themselves. Sean Melton has been a consistent top elite junior gymnast for a long time. He has won national AA titles at every level. Melton's formative years in the sport were spent at Orlando Metro under the tutelage of current Ohio State Assistant Coach Casimiro Suarez. When Suarez joined Head Coach Rustam Sharipov's staff last summer, Melton and teammate Jake Martin moved to Colorado Springs to live and train at the Olympic Training Center. Martin ultimately signed with the Buckeyes to begin his very promising collegiate career, while Melton will be completing his final [...more]
Guest blogger Matthew Rusk was one of the lucky ones able to make the journey to London. Rusk is a significant contributor of insightful gymnastics commentary, and is well known in the gymnastics community. The Indiana University sophomore submitted the following gem, which chronicled his trip to London. He saw two days of event finals, along with watching other sports like beach volleyball, taekwondo, diving and handball. Sounds like Matthew had a great trip, and we're pleased to have him share [...more]
