LONG BEACH, Calif., May 8, 2014 – The team from Region V captured the junior elite Level 10 team title tonight at 2014 U.S. Men’s Junior Olympic National Championships at the Long Beach (Calif.) Arena. They earned a total of 272.350, followed by Region IV (270.050) and Region III (268.500).
Competition continues tomorrow with Level 8 and Level 9.
In the junior elite division, athletes compete one day of optional routines followed by technical sequences, which are scheduled for Saturday. The following athletes posted the top Level 10 scores in the all-around for each age group.
- 18 year olds: Dmitri Belanovski of Swiss Turners, 88.250
- 17 year olds: Marvin Kimble of Swiss Turners, 91.900
- 16 year olds: Alec Yoder of Interactive, 89.050
- 15 year olds: Matthew Wenske of Cypress, 83.800
After the first of two days of optional Level 10 Junior Olympic division competition, the leaders are as follows.
- 18 year olds: Piercen Davis of Desert Gymcats, 80.450
- 17 year olds: Nathan Goff of Gym World Central, 84.050
- 16 year olds: Matt Whitaker of North Valley, 80.150
- 15 year olds: Favian Valdez of USGDC, 83.050
Tickets may be purchased at the Long Beach Arena ticket office.
The U.S. Junior Olympic National Championships is one of the national championships of USA Gymnastics, the sport’s national governing body in the United States. Many Junior Olympic champions have gone on to make the U.S. National Team and represent the United States in international competition and/or to compete in collegiate gymnastics. All of the members of the men’s medal-winning 2004 (silver) and 2008 (bronze) U.S. Olympic Teams, as well as the 2012 Olympic Team, are former Junior Olympic National Championships participants. Past participants include Paul Hamm, 2004 Olympic all-around champion; Jonathan Horton, 2008 Olympic horizontal bar silver medalist and 2010 World all-around bronze medalist; and Danell Leyva, 2012 Olympic all-around bronze medalist.