2008 Olympic all-around champion Nastia Liukin of Parker, Texas, and 2008 Olympic horizontal bar silver-medalist Jonathan Horton of Houston will both be in the Boston-Worcester area to help promote the 2010 Tyson American Cup, scheduled for March 6 at the DCU Center in Worcester, Mass. Liukin will also be talking about the 2010 Nastia Liukin Cup, which will be held at the DCU Center on March 5.
On Monday, Jan. 18, Horton will sign autographs and meet with fans at Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Horton, who will compete in the 2010 Tyson American Cup, is the reigning U.S. all-around champion and a two-time Tyson American Cup champ. He was a member of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Men’s Team that won the team bronze medal in Beijing, as well as the silver medal for the horizontal bar. Saint Vincent Hospital is located at 123 Summer Street in Worcester.
On Wednesday, Jan. 20, Liukin will speak to young gymnasts and fans at a gymnastics demonstration at the Infinity Pool Court at the Natick Collection in Natick, Mass., from 4-5:30 p.m. Liukin, a two-time former champion of the Tyson American Cup, won gymnastics’ most coveted prize, the Olympic all-around gold medal, at the 2008 Olympic Games. Liukin has a total of nine world and five Olympic medals to her credit. The address for the Natick Collection Mall is 1245 Worcester Street in Natick.
The Tyson American Cup, one of the most prestigious all-around international invitationals, features some of the world’s top gymnasts in an all-around format. The U.S. athletes who have already accepted invitations to compete are 2009 world all-around silver-medalist Rebecca Bross of Plano, Texas; 2009 U.S. all-around silver-medalist Tim McNeill of Falls Church, Va.; and Horton. The remaining U.S. woman and the international field will be announced in the near future. On sale now, ticket prices range from $35-125. Tickets may be purchased by phone at 800-745-3000; online at www.ticketmaster.com; at all Ticketmaster outlets; through participating gym clubs; or at the DCU Center Ticket Office. Visa is the preferred method of payment. For more information, go to www.tysonamericancup.com.
The Nastia Liukin Cup, held the evening before the Tyson American Cup, is an all-around competition for 36 of the country’s rising female gymnasts. The field will be chosen from the 15 invitationals that are part of the Nastia Liukin Cup Series. Each invitational will select a minimum of two athletes from their respective fields to compete in the Cup. The Nastia Liukin Cup is a joint effort of Liukin and USA Gymnastics. Proceeds from the event benefit the Nastia Liukin Fund, a charitable fund within the National Gymnastics Foundation. Tickets for the Nastia Liukin Cup are also currently on sale. For more information, go to www.nastialiukincup.com.
About Jonathan Horton
Horton helped the U.S. men win the Olympic team bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and brought home the silver medal on horizontal bar. He is the reigning U.S. all-around champion, a title he won at the 2009 Visa Championships. A three-time team captain at the University of Oklahoma, Horton’s collegiate accomplishments include: 2006 NCAA all-around champion; and Oklahoma records for career All-America honors (18) and career NCAA individual titles (six) – breaking marks previously held by two-time Olympic gold-medalist Bart Conner. Horton led the Sooners to three NCAA team titles (2005-06, 2008) and a second-place finish in 2007. In 2008, he was named USA Gymnastics’ Men’s Athlete of the Year and won the 2008 NCAA Nissen-Emery Award, given to the top male senior gymnast. In addition to training, Horton works as a coach at his gym, Cypress Academy
About Nastia Liukin
At the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, Liukin’s total of five medals tied the U.S. gymnastics record for most medals in one Olympic Games, currently held by Mary Lou Retton (1984) and Shannon Miller (1992). Liukin’s medals are: gold – all-around; silver – team, balance beam and uneven bars; and bronze – floor exercise. Liukin is just the third U.S. woman to win the Olympic all-around crown. Earlier in 2008, Liukin won the all-around title at both the Tyson American Cup and the Pacific Rim Championships presented by Gillette Venus. Liukin has nine world medals to her credit: She was named the USOC’s Co-Sportswoman of the Year, the Women’s Sports Foundation’s 2008 Individual Sportswoman of the Year and the United States Sports Academy Female Athlete of the Year. Liukin and her teammates on the 2007 U.S. Women’s World Championships Team were selected as the 2007 U.S. Olympic Committee’s Team of the Year. She was also chosen as one of 2009’s most influential women by MSN Lifestyle. Liukin is still competing and is coached by her father, Valeri, who has four Olympic medals from 1988, including two gold. She trains at WOGA.