USA wins team titles, sweeps all-around at Junior Pan Am Championships

The USA not only won the men’s and women’s team titles at the 2007 Junior Pan American Championships in Guatemala City, Guatemala, but the United States also swept all three medals in both all-around competitions.

November 25, 2007

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, Nov. 24, 2007 – The USA not only won the men’s and women’s team titles at the 2007 Junior Pan American Championships in Guatemala City, Guatemala, but the United States also swept all three medals in both all-around competitions. Steven Legendre of Flower Mound, Texas, and Mattie Larson of Los Angeles won the all-around gold medals for the men and women, respectively.

For the men, the USA handily won the team title with 262.933 points. Brazil was second at 252.566, followed by Argentina at 240.832 in third. The women also easily outdistanced runner-up Canada, 177.501 to 168.634. Brazil was third at 161.634.

The members of the men’s gold-medal squad are: Alexy Bilozertchev of Hilliard, Ohio; Glen Ishino of Santa Ana, Calif.; Danell Leyva of Miami, Fla.; and Legendre. John Orozco of Bronx, N.Y., is the team alternate.

The members of the women’s championship team are: Olivia Courtney of Fairfax, Va.; Chelsea Davis of Austin, Texas; Jordyn Wieber of DeWitt, Mich.; and Larson.

The USA dominated the all-around competition. For the men, they swept the top four places. Following Legendre at 87.032, Ishino was second at 86.967 with Bilozertchev in third at 86.534. Leyva was fourth at 85.866. The women also claimed all three all-around medals. Larson won the gold medal with 59.217 points. Wieber was second at 59.167 and Davis third at 58.267. Courtney was fifth at 57.100.

For the individual event finals, the USA advanced two gymnasts for each apparatus per the two-athlete maximum rule. Competing in the event finals for the men are: floor exercise – Ishino and Bilozertchev; pommel horse – Bilozertchev and Leyva; still rings – Ishino and Legendre; vault and parallel bars – Legendre and Leyva; and horizontal bar – Leyva and Ishino. The women in the event finals are: vault, uneven bars and floor exercise – Larson and Wieber; and balance beam – Davis and Wieber.

Based in Indianapolis, USA Gymnastics is the national governing body for gymnastics in the

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USA Gymnastics is the National Governing Body (NGB) for the sport of gymnastics in the United States, consistent with the Ted Stevens Olympic & Amateur Sports Act, the Bylaws of the United States Olympic Committee and the International Gymnastics Federation.