INDIANAPOLIS – The United States ‘ up-and-comers made their statement at the 2005 American Cup presented by T.J. Maxx, winning 10 medals – four of them gold – against a top international field at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale , N.Y.

 

Team USA ‘s Alexander Artemev ( Lakewood , Colo. ) got the day started off strong with a solid floor routine and a score of 9.112 for the silver behind Netherlands ‘ Jeffrey Wammes at 9.225. Just a few minutes later, Artemev followed up his floor silver with a fast-paced, technically perfect routine on the pommel horse which earned a 9.362 and the gold, prompting his competitors and audience into a standing ovation.

Alicia Sacramone ( Winchester , Mass. ), the ’04 World Cup Final champ on vault, held off teammate Melanie Sinclair ( Orlando , Fla. ) for the gold, 9.387 to 9.349. Sacramone also turned in a stellar performance on floor, winning the silver with a score of 9.537 – just 0.050 behind Patricia Moreno, the reigning Olympic bronze medalist.
Reigning uneven bars world champion Chellsie Memmel ( West Allis , Wis. ) proved she has returned full strength from a left foot injury last season to win the uneven bars gold with a score of 9.600. Memmel also won gold on bars at the 2004 World Cup Final in Birmingham , England in November.
The final gold of the day came from Nastia Liukin ( Plano , Texas ), who earned a 9.587 on the balance beam to tie for first with Olympic all-around bronze medalist Zhang Nan of China . Memmel finished a close third at 9.500.
Hometown favorite Eric LaMorte (Ronkonkoma, N.Y.), competing in his first event as a member of the National Team, did not disappoint, finishing with a 9.625 for third on still rings behind six-time World Cup gold medalist Yuri Van Gelder of the Netherlands and two-time world champion Jordan Jovtchev of Bulgaria.
University of Illinois ‘ Justin Spring ( Burke , Va. ) brought home the final medal of the day, tying Japanese Olympic gold medalist Hisashi Mizutori for second on the high bar at 9.500. France ‘s Yann Cucherat took the gold at 9.612.
Other event champions included Wammes on vault at 9.456, and Japan ‘s Kazuya Ueda on parallel bars at 9.587.
The 30 th American Cup, a FIG World Cup competition, featured more than 70 of the world’s best gymnasts from 27 nations competing in an event finals only format. The top eight athletes from Friday’s prelims advanced to Saturday’s finals. Athletes were competing for World Cup points to qualify to the bi-annual World Cup Final and for more than $46,000 in prize money.

2005 American Cup presented by T.J. Maxx

Feb. 25-26, Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale , N.Y.


Final Results

 

MEN

 

Floor Exercise

1, Jeffrey Wammes, NED, 9.225.

2, Alexander Artemev, USA , 9.112.

3, Luis Rivera, PUR, 9.037.

4, Rafael Martinez, ESP, 8.975.

5, Hisashi Mizutori, JPN, 8.850.

6, Nathan Gafuik, CAN, 8.800.

7, Sami Aalto, FIN, 8.450.

8, Tomislav Markovic, CRO, 7.975.

 

Pommel Horse

1, Alexander Artemev, USA , 9.362.

2, Hisashi Mizutori, JPN, 9.312.

3, Robert Seligman, CRO, 9.100.

4, Louis Smith, GBR, 8.475.

5, Krisztian Berki, HUN, 8.400.

6, Pierre Beny, FRA, 8.07 4.

7, Luis Vargas, PUR, 7.925.

8, Rafael Martinez, ESP, 7.850.

 

Still Rings

1, Yuri Van Gelder, NED, 9.750.

2, Jordan Jovtchev, BUL, 9.687.

3, Eric La Morte, USA , 9.625.

4, Lu Bo, CHN, 9.350.

5, David Sender, USA , 9.300.

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