INDIANAPOLIS, July 23, 2013 – The USA is sending gymnasts to compete in synchronized trampoline, tumbling, double mini-trampoline and acrobatic gymnastics at the 9th World Games, July 25-Aug. 4 in Cali, Colombia. The gymnastics events run from July 26-31.

A total of 13 U.S. gymnasts are expected to compete at El Pueblo Coliseum.

Trampoline and tumbling

  • Synchronized trampoline
    World Elite’s Logan Dooley of Lake Forest, Calif., and Neil Gulati of Irvine, Calif.
    Charlotte Drury of Laguna Niguel, Calif./World Elite, and Shaylee Dunavin of Amarillo, Texas/All American Gymnastics
    Dakota Earnest of Tokio, Texas/Acrospirits, and Savannah Vinsant of Lafayette, La./T&T Express

  • Tumbling
    Kalon Ludvigson of Pocatello, Idaho/Team Revolution
    Yuliya Brown of Idaho Falls, Idaho/Idaho Elite

  • Double mini-trampoline
    Alex Renkert of Indianapolis, Ind./Geist Sports Academy
    Austin White, Newport Coast, Calif./World Elite
    Kristle Lowell of Orland Park, Ill./Branch Gymnastics

Acrobatic gymnastics

  • Women’s pair: Nicole Barrilleaux of Metairie, La./Crescent City Gymnastics, and Beth Landeche of New Orleans, La./Crescent City Gymnastics

The competition schedule is as follows.

    July 29 – Synchronized trampoline – qualification and finals for men
    Acrobatic gymnastics – qualification and finals for women’s pair and mixed pair

    July 30 – Tumbling — qualification and finals for women and men
    Acrobatic gymnastics – qualification and finals for men’s pair and women’s group

    July 31 – Synchronized trampoline – qualification and finals for women
    Double-mini — qualification and finals for men and women
    Acrobatic gymnastics — qualification and finals for men’s group

For more information on gymnastics at the World Games, click here. For information on the World Games in general, go to worldgames2013.com.co/en/.

Governed by the International World Games Association (IWGA) and recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the World Games provides an atmosphere similar to the Olympic Games for non-Olympic sports and disciplines. The top athletes from 38 sports will compete during the 11 days in Cali and two other municipalities in the Cauca Valley in western Colombia.

Gymnastics, one of the major sports featured at the World Games, has four disciplines (including rhythmic, trampoline and tumbling, and acrobatic) that represent a total of 22 medal events.

Tumbling and individual and synchronized trampoline have been included in the World Games since the event debuted in 1981 in Santa Clara, Calif. Double mini-trampoline was added to the World Games in 2001. Individual trampoline joined the Olympic Games program in 2000, which resulted in its removal from the World Games.

A total of 88 male and female competitors will participate in trampoline and tumbling in Cali: 48 athletes, synchronized trampoline; 20, double-mini; and 20, tumbling. The preliminary rounds qualify the top eight ranked gymnasts or pairs with a maximum of one per federation and discipline for the finals. The competing athletes qualified at the 2011 World Championships in Birmingham, Great Britain.

Acrobatic gymnastics, the fourth gymnastics discipline in the World Games, first appeared at the 1993 World Games in The Hague, Netherlands. The field’s 78 acrobats represent six pairs or groups each in women’s, mixed and men’s pairs, and women’s and men’s groups. The women’s group has three gymnasts, and the men’s group has four gymnasts. The top four pairs/groups in the qualification round (which features one dynamic and one balance exercise) advance to the finals (one combined exercise). Performances at the 2012 World Championships in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., served as the qualification for the World Games.

Rhythmic gymnastics, the only gymnastic discipline represented at both Olympic and World Games, was introduced to the World Games in Akita, Japan, in 2001. For the 2013 World Games, athlete qualification was by athlete, not country, and although the USA’s Julie Zetlin of Bethesda, Md., qualified for the World Games, she has since retired from the sport. The World Games feature competition in the four individual events: hoop, ball, clubs and ribbon. Aerobic gymnastics is also included in the World Games.

Ron Froehlich, the chairman emeritus for the USA Gymnastics Board of Directors and current auditor for the International Gymnastics Federation, is president of IWGA, which organizes and stages the World Games.