INDIANAPOLIS, Ind., July 18, 2011 — The San Jose Convention Center will welcome the country’s best acrobatic gymnasts for the 2011 Acrobatic Gymnastics National Championships, beginning on Saturday, July 23, in San Jose, Calif. The Acrobatic Gymnastics National Championships bring together more than 500 of the nation’s top and up-and-coming acrobatic gymnasts from the junior and senior elite levels and Junior Olympic Levels 5-10. The competition has 124 San Jose-area athletes entered, including four U.S. national team members who are expected to compete: Eirian Smith of Livermore, Calif. and Jake Kanavel of San Jose, Calif., who look to win their third-straight junior elite mixed pairs national championship title, and Cassandra Lim of San Ramon, Calif., and Brian Kincher of Livermore, Calif. Lim and Kincher both finished second in last year’s championships in the junior women’s group and junior mixed pairs competitions, respectively, and are now competing together in mixed pairs. Ticket sales will go on sale at the start of the championships at the San Jose Convention Center Box Office.
The Acrobatic Gymnastics National Championships feature competition in women’s pair, men’s pair, mixed pair, women’s group and men’s group for each level. The event kicks off on July 23 with the opening ceremonies at 6:30 p.m., followed by a junior and senior elite and Level 10 session. The rest of the competition schedule is: July 24 – Levels 5, 6 and 7 at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., with the second session for junior and senior elite and Level 10 at 6:30 p.m.; July 25 – Levels 8 and 9 at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., with the final session for junior and senior elite and Level 10 at 6:30 p.m.; July 26 – Levels 5, 6 and 7 at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. and Levels 8 and 9 at 6:30 p.m.; and July 27 – Levels 6 and 7 at 9 a.m., and Levels 5, 6 and 7 at 1 p.m.
Available at the San Jose Convention Center Box Office, ticket prices are: single-day tickets – 6 years of age and under -free, ages 7-13-$13, and adults-$26; and five day pass –6 years of age and under-free, ages 7-13-$42 and adults-$84. In recognition of Visa’s long-time support of USA Gymnastics, Visa is the preferred method of payment.
As a longstanding partner with USA Gymnastics, the San Jose Sports Authority is pleased to welcome the Acrobatic Gymnastics National Championships to the Capital of Silicon Valley. San Jose has a successful history with gymnastics, having staged the 2007 Visa Championships, 2008 Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships, 2009 Trampoline and Tumbling Junior Olympic National Championships and the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials for rhythmic gymnastics and trampoline. The city will play host to the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Gymnastics June 28-July 1 at the HP Pavilion at San Jose.
Acrobatic gymnastics combines the beauty of dance with the strength and agility of acrobatics. Routines are choreographed to music and consist of dance, tumbling, and partner skills. At the elite level, each pair or group performs a balance, dynamic and combined routine. Pyramids and partner holds characterize the balance routine, while synchronized tumbling and intricate flight elements define the dynamic exercise. An acrobatic gymnastics pair consists of a base and a top. A women’s group is comprised of a base, middle and top partner, while a men’s group has a base, two middle partners and one top partner.
The San Jose Sports Authority is a non-profit organization whose mission is to increase the City of San Jose’s economic development, visibility and civic pride through sports. Serving as the City’s sports commission since its inception in 1991, the Sports Authority has provided leadership and support to attract or host hundreds of sporting events in San Jose and the South Bay. The Sports Authority also supports and operates community, youth and amateur sports programs, including the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame, The First Tee of San Jose, and the REACH Youth Scholarship Program. To learn more, visit www.sjsa.org.