GYMNASTICS: Top U.S. male gymnasts to compete in 2008 Winter Cup Challenge

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind., Jan. 29, 2008-2007 U.S. all-around champion David Durante of Garwood, N.J., 2004 Olympic all-around champion Paul Hamm of Waukesha, Wis., and 2006-07 Tyson American Cup champion Jonathan Horton of Houston, who finished fourth in the all-around at the 2007 World Championships, are among the 13 members of the current U.S. Men's Senior National Team scheduled to compete in the 2008 Winter Cup Challenge, Feb. 7 and 9, at the Las Vegas Sports Center in Las Vegas, Nev."The Winter Cup Challenge is an important start to the Olympic year for the men," said Steve Penny, president of USA Gymnastics."This competition features the true variety of talent in the United States. The mixture of returning Olympians, established veterans, and aspiring young athletes will create an exciting event."The Winter Cup Challenge will be the first all-around competition for Hamm since winning the Olympic title in 2004. Three-time Olympian and 2004 Olympic team silver-medalist Blaine Wilson of Columbus, Ohio, also is scheduled to compete in his first competition since the 2004 Olympic Games. Fourteen athletes from the U.S. Men's Junior National Team also will participate in the event. The Winter Cup serves as a re-ranking competition for the senior men's team. Based on performances at the Winter Cup Challenge, seven gymnasts will be named to the senior national team. The seven members of the 2007 World Championships Team, which placed fourth in the team standings, automatically retain their national team status. Here's a quick look at the members of the U.S. Men's Senior National Team who are competing in the Winter Cup Challenge: ' Guillermo Alvarez of Denver, Colo./Team Chevron, helped the U.S. Men finish fourth at the 2007 World Championships and also placed fourth on the floor exercise. At the 2007 Pan American Games, he won the silver medal on floor exercise and the bronze medal in the all-around and team competition. He trains with Minnesota Gymnastics. ' Alexander Artemev of Morrison, Colo./Team Chevron, was a member of the 2007 World Championships Team that finished fourth. He is a five-time U.S. champion (all-around in 2006, pommel horse in 2006-07, parallel bars in 2004 and 2006), and claimed the pommel horse world bronze medal in 2006. He trains at 5280 Gymnastics. ' David Durante of Garwood, N.J./Team Chevron, helped the U.S. Men's Team to a fourth-place finish at the 2007 World Championships and was an all-around finalist. At the 2007 Visa Championships, he won his first U.S. all-around title, as well as the parallel bars crown. He has competed in two Pan American Games, winning the team bronze medal in 2003 and 2007, and the all-around silver medal in 2003. He trains at the USOTC. ' Joseph Hagerty of Rio Rancho, N.M./Team Chevron, was a member of the bronze-medal-winning team at the 2007 Pan Am Games and was third on the parallel bars at the 2007 Visa Championships. At the 2007 Winter Cup Challenge, Hagerty won the high bar. He trains at the USOTC. ' Paul Hamm of Waukesha, Wis./Team Chevron, became the first U.S. male gymnast to win the Olympic all-around title when he won the gold medal at the 2004 Olympic Games. His gymnastics resume includes 10 national titles, five world medals and three Olympic medals. The Winter Cup is his first all-around competition since the 2004 Olympic Games, and he has accepted an invitation to compete in the 2008 Tyson American Cup. He trains at Ohio State University. ' Jonathan Horton of Houston, Texas/University of Oklahoma, became just the fifth U.S. man to finish in the top four at an Olympic Games or a World Championships with his fourth-place finish at the 2007 World Championships, where he also helped the U.S. Men's Team finish fourth. He won back-to-back Tyson American Cup wins in 2006-07 and a national title on the floor exercise in 2006. ' Sho Nakamori of Albany, Calif./Stanford University, placed third in the all-around and high bar and tied for fourth on vault at the 2007 Visa Championships. He was the alternate on the U.S. Men's Team that placed fourth at the 2007 World Championships. ' David Sender of Arlington Heights, Ill./Stanford University, placed fourth on vault at the Good Luck Beijing International Tournament and was a member of the 2006 World Championships Team. At last year's Winter Cup Challenge, he was first on vault and second in the all-around. ' Justin Spring of Burke, Va./Team Chevron, placed first on high bar and second on the floor exercise at the 2007 Visa Championships. At the 2007 Pan Am Games, he won the gold medal on parallel bars and the team bronze medal. He trains with the University of Illinois, where he is an assistant coach. ' Clay Strother of Jasper, Texas/Team Chevron, placed second on pommel horse at the 2007 Visa Championships and was a member of the 2006 World Championships Team. He trains at Minnesota Gymnastics. ' Kevin Tan of Fremont, Calif./Team Chevron, placed fourth on still rings and in the team competition at the 2007 World Championships. He won the U.S. title on still rings in 2006-07 and earned the gold medal on still rings at a World Cup in Paris in 2007. He trains at Penn State University, where he is an assistant coach. ' Yewki Tomita of Tucson, Ariz./Team Chevron, won pommel horse at the 2007 Winter Cup Challenge and tied for fourth on high bar at the 2007 Visa Championships. He trains at the USOTC. ' Sean Townsend of Dickinson, Texas/HGA, is the reigning Winter Cup Challenge champion in the all-around and on the parallel bars. Townsend, who was a member of the 2000 U.S. Olympic Team, was the parallel bars world champion in 2001. He won a silver medal on parallel bars at a World Cup in Paris in 2007. All five members of the U.S. squad that won the team gold medal at the 2007 Junior Pan Am Championships are competing in the 2008 Winter Cup Challenge: Alexy Bilozertchev of Hilliard, Ohio/ OSU Boys Team; Glen Ishino of Santa Ana, Calif./SCATS Gymnastics; Steven Legendre of Flower Mound, Texas/University of Oklahoma; Danell Leyva of Miami, Fla./Universal Gymnastics; and John Orozco of Bronx, N.Y./World Cup Gymnastics (alternate). Bilozertchev and Orozco were the 2007 U.S. junior all-around champions in the 16-18 and 14-15 year-old divisions, respectively. In addition to the members of the Junior Pan Am Championships Team, the other members of the junior national team competing in the Winter Cup Challenge are: 14-15 year-old- Donothan Bailey of Lake Forest, Calif./Azarian Gymnastics; Jake Dalton of Sparks, Nev./Gymnastics Nevada; Yoshi Mori of Irvine, Calif./New Hope Academy of Gymnastics; and Joshua Wokurka of Lombard, Ill./Bartlett Gymnastics; and 16-18 year-old- Kyle Bunthuwong of El Cerrito, Calif./UC Berkeley; Ryan Lieberman of Lake Forest, Ill./Stanford University; Philip Onorato of Plano, Texas/WOGA; Miguel Pineda of Galloway, Ohio/Hocking Valley Gymnastics; and Sean Regan of Libertyville, Ill./Ohio State University. The Winter Cup Challenge has two days of competition. Scores from both days of competition count toward the final rankings for the all-around and individual events. The qualification round on Feb. 7 consists of two sessions, each with approximately 44 athletes, beginning at 12 p.m. and 6 p.m. The top 42 gymnasts, based on the points ranking system approved by the Men's Program Committee, will advance to the finals, which begin at 7:15 p.m. on Feb. 9. Tickets go on sale on the afternoon of Feb. 7 at the Las Vegas Sports Center. One-day admission for all sessions is $20 per person. An all-event pass with admission to all sessions, including the finals, may be purchased for $40 per adult and $30 per child/student. There is no reserved seating. Seven gymnasts will be named to the U.S. Men's Senior National Team following the Winter Cup Challenge. Four athletes will be added to the team based on the national team points system rank order, while the final three gymnasts will be selected from the Winter Cup Challenge participants and petitioned athletes by the Men's Program Committee. These seven, along with the seven members of the 2007 World Championships Team who already qualified for the team, will comprise the U.S. Men's Senior National Team until the 2008 Visa Championships in May. Based in Indianapolis, USA Gymnastics is the national governing body for gymnastics in the United States. Its mission is to encourage participation and the pursuit of excellence in the sport. Its disciplines include men's and women's artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline and tumbling, and acrobatic gymnastics. For more information, log on to www.usa-gymnastics.org. # 2008 Winter Cup Challenge participants By state, information shows name, hometown/club Arizona Yewki Tomita, Tucson, Ariz./Team Chevron California Eli Alcarez, Hacienda Heights, Calif./Stanford University Donothan Bailey, Lake Forest, Calif./Azarian Gymnastics Tyler Block, Kensington, Calif./UC-Berkeley Kyle Bunthuwong, El Cerrito, Calif./UC Berkeley Kyson Bunthuwong, El Cerrito, Calif./UC Berkeley Josh Dixon, San Jose, Calif./Stanford University Glen Ishino, Santa Ana, Calif./SCATS Gymnastics Yoshi Mori, Irvine, Calif./New Hope Academy of Gymnastics Sho Nakamori, Albany, Calif./Stanford University Kevin Tan, Fremont, Calif./Team Chevron Colorado Guillermo Alvarez, Denver, Colo./Team Chevron Alexander Artemev, Morrison, Colo./Team Chevron Geoffrey Corrigan, Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Olympic Training Center Grant Osborne, Ft. Collins, Colo./Ohio State University Florida Kerry Adderly, Orlando, Fla./Gattaca-LVSA Jon Buese, Gainesville, Fla./University of Iowa Derek Helsby, Orlando, Fla./Penn State University Vladislav Klurman, North Miami Beach, Fla./Penn State University Danell Leyva, Miami, Fla./Universal Gymnastics Maximilian Mayr, Miami, Fla./Universal Gymnastics Edward Mesa, Cooper City, Fla./Universal Gymnastics Georgia Justin Laury, Marietta, Ga./HGA Illinois Alex Buscaglia, Oak Brook, Ill./Stanford University Wesley Haagensen, Belleville, Ill./University of Illinois Thomas Kelley, Libertyville, Ill./University of Michigan Ryan Lieberman, Lake Forest, Ill./Stanford University Sean Regan, Libertyville, Ill./Ohio State University David Sender, Arlington Heights, Ill./Stanford University Luke Stannard, Waukegan, Ill./University of Illinois Joshua Wokurka, Lombard, Ill./Bartlett Gymnastics Kansas Bryant Hadden, Wichita, Kan./Stanford University Maryland John Vogtman, Baltimore, Md./Temple University Massachusetts Dylan Carney, Dartmouth, Mass./Stanford University R.J. Heflin, Storeham, Mass./HGA Mel Anton Santander, Southborough, Mass./University of Michigan Luke Vexler, Amherst, Mass./Temple University Nebraska Timothy Schmidt, Blair, Neb./University of Nebraska Stephen Tetrault, Lincoln, Neb./University of Nebraska Nevada Jake Dalton, Sparks, Nev./Gymnastics Nevada New Jersey Joe Catrambone, Deptford, N.J./University of Michigan David Durante, Garwood, N.J./Team Chevron Andrew Elkind, Cherry Hill, N.J./U.S. Olympic Training Center Sterling Kramer, Garwood, N.J./Temple University Ralph Rosso, Morganville, N.J./University of Michigan New Mexico Shaun Antonio, Rio Rancho, N.M./Penn State University Joseph Hagerty, Rio Rancho, N.M./Team Chevron Edward Umphrey, Albuquerque, N.M./University of Michigan New York Zeke Jackson, Latham, N.Y./Gattaca-LVSA John Orozco, Bronx, N.Y./World Cup Gymnastics Evan Roth, North Woodmere, N.Y./UC-Berkeley Paul Ruggeri III, Manlius, N.Y./University of Illinois North Carolina Colin Christ, Charlotte, N.C./UC-Berkeley Jacob Messina, Matthews, N.C./University of Oklahoma Ohio Alexy Bilozertchev, Hilliard, Ohio/OSU Boys Team DJ Bucher, Mason, Ohio/Ohio State University Aaron Fortunato, Bedford, Ohio/Minnesota Gymnastics Ben Ketelsen, Lancaster, Ohio/University of Iowa Miguel Pineda, Galloway, Ohio/Hocking Valley Gymnastics Blaine Wilson, Worthington, Ohio/Ohio State University Pennsylvania Taqiy Abdullah, Philadelphia, Pa./University of Oklahoma Eddie Hay, Butler, Pa./Ohio State University Ian Jackson, Harrisburg, Pa./University of Oklahoma Tennessee Jake Bateman, Kingsport, Tenn./Ohio State University Texas Andre Berry, Hempstead, Texas/Minnesota Gymnastics Raj Bhavsar, Houston, Texas/HGA Tim Gentry, Plano, Texas/Stanford University David Henderson, Crosby, Texas/U.S. Olympic Training Center Jamie Henderson, Crosby, Texas/Gattaca/Oklahoma Jonathan Horton, Houston, Texas/University of Oklahoma Steven Legendre, Flower Mound, Texas/University of Oklahoma Tyler Mizoguchi, Houston, Texas/HGA Philip Onorato, Plano, Texas/WOGA Chris Silcox, San Antonio, Texas/University of Illinois Cole Storer, Plano, Texas/Minnesota Gymnastics Clay Strother, Jasper, Texas/Team Chevron Todd Thornton, Houston, Texas/Team Chevron Sean Townsend, Dickinson, Texas/HGA Tyler Yamauchi, Sugarland, Texas/University of Illinois Utah Jake Lee, Saratoga Springs, Utah/Minnesota Gymnastics Virginia Tim McNeill, Falls Church, Va./UC-Berkeley Viorel Popescu, Glen Allen, Va./Gattaca-LVSA Justin Spring, Burke, Va./Team Chevron Wisconsin Paul Hamm, Waukesha, Wis./Team Chevron