Rebecca Bross (center) and Alexandra Raisman (left) finished 1-2 on the
balance beam and floor exercise
© Shane Goss

MELBOURNE, Australia, May 2, 2010 – The U.S. women wrapped up the 2010 Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships at Hisense Arena in Melbourne, Australia, by winning a total of 12 individual event medals – 5 gold and seven silver. Rebecca Bross of Plano, Texas/WOGA, and Jordyn Wieber of DeWitt, Mich./Twistars USA, each won two gold medals, with Kyla Ross of Aliso Viejo, Calif./Gym-Max, picking up the fifth.

Bross won the senior balance beam and floor exercise crowns, along with the uneven bars silver. Wieber took top honors on the junior uneven bars and floor exercise, along with the vault silver. Ross won the junior vault title and finished second on both uneven bars and floor. Alexandra Raisman of Needham, Mass./Brestyan’s, picked up the silver medal for the senior balance beam and floor, with Sabrina Vega of Carmel, N.Y./Dynamic Gymnastics, claiming the junior balance beam silver.

Bross and Raisman went one-two on both the balance beam and floor exercise. On beam, Bross posted a 14.925 to Raisman’s 14.675. China’s Liu Fang Wu was third at 14.625. On floor, Bross handily won the title recording a 15.175, while Raisman posted a 14.625. Canada’s Kristina Vaculik was third at 13.925. Bross finished behind China’s Qiushuang Huang on bars, 15.450 to 14.700. Russia’s Ksenia Afanasyeva finished third with her 14.250.

“I’m pretty happy with what I did today,” said Bross, who won the senior all-around title earlier in the championships. “I had a few mistakes here and there, but overall I’m pretty happy. On bars I had some rough handstands and some short handstands, and on beam I had a few wobbles here and there. It’s the beginning of the season and it’s my second meet so far this year. It’s good to build off this meet and keep strong from here.”

Canada’s Dominique Pegg won the senior vault. Bridget Sloan of Pittsboro, Ind./Sharp’s Gymnastics, did not compete in the individual event finals.

In the junior competition, Wieber and Ross finished one-two on vault, uneven bars and floor exercise. Ross won the vault title, 15.1 to 14.925. Wieber took the bars and floor titles with 14.835 and 14.600, respectively, with Ross earning a 14.250 on bars and 14.200 on floor to take second. Qiaohong Zhou of China scored a 14.325 to finish third on vault. China’s Sigi Zheng took third on uneven bars with 13.925.

“It felt really great,” said Wieber, the junior Pac Rim all-around champion. “My main aim was to come out here and improve from the other day. I was really disappointed with my beam but I knew I had to bring it back and finish strong.”

Vega earned the silver medal on balance beam with a 14.475. China’s Sixin Tan earned the beam title with a 15.350 and tied for third on floor with Australia’s Amelia McGrath at 13.95. Madeline Gardiner of Canada finished third at 14.425.

In total, the USA won 35 medals at the 2010 Pacific Rim Championships. Earlier in the competition, the U.S. men and women won both team titles. John Orozco of Bronx, N.Y., claimed the men’s junior all-around title and C.J. Maestas of Corrales, N.M., took the silver. The U.S. women went one-two in the senior and junior all-around competitions: Bross won the senior title, with Raisman finishing second and Wieber earned the junior all-around title, with Ross taking the silver. The U.S. men won 15 individual event medals – six gold, four silver, and five bronze – the gold-medalists were Chris Cameron of Winter Haven, Fla., Danell Leyva of Miami, Maestas and Orzoco.

2010 Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships
Melbourne, Australia
May 2, 2010
Women’s individual event finals

Junior competition

Vault
1. Kyla Ross, Aliso Viejo, Calif./Gym-Max, 15.1
2. Jordyn Wieber, DeWitt, Mich./Twistars USA, 14.925
3. Qiaohong Zhou, China, 14.325

Uneven bars
1. Jordyn Wieber, DeWitt, Mich./Twistars USA, 14.835
2. Kyla Ross, Aliso Viejo, Calif./Gym-Max, 14.250
3. Sigi Zheng, China, 13.925

Balance beam
1. Sixin Tan, China, 15.350
2. Sabrina Vega, Carmel, N.Y./Dynamic Gymnastics, 14.475
3. Madeline Gardiner, Canada, 14.425

Floor exercise
1. Jordyn Wieber, DeWitt, Mich./Twistars USA, 14.600
2. Kyla Ross, Aliso Viejo, Calif./Gym-Max, 14.200
3. Sxin Tan, China, and Amelia McGrath, Australia, 13.95

Senior competition

Vault
1. Dominique Pegg, Canada, 13.850 avg
2. Emily Little, Australia, 13.737 avg
3. Alexa Moreno, Mexico, 13.675

Uneven bars
1. Qiushuang Huang, China, 15.450
2. Rebecca Bross, Plano, Texas/WOGA, 14.7
3. Ksenia Afanasyeva, Russia, 14.250

Balance beam
1. Rebecca Bross, Plano, Texas/WOGA, 14.925
2. Alexandra Raisman, Needham, Mass./Brestyan’s, 14.675
3. Liu Fang Wu, China, 14.625

Floor exercise
1. Rebecca Bross, Plano, Texas/WOGA, 15.175
2. Alexandra Raisman, Needham, Mass./Brestyan’s,14.625
3. Kristina Vaculik, Canada, 13.925