It begins.
The American Cup, the most high profile international gymnastics competition held annually in the United States, is set to take place March 2 in Worcester, Mass. Sure, it’s technically the beginning on the 2013 season, but it’s really the beginning of the four-year run up to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.
Excited yet? There’s more: Team USA will feature three 2012 Olympians and a high profile Olympic alternate, in what is one of the best American Cup field in years.
Kyla Ross, the youngest member of London’s “Fierce Five” started her career with Olympic gold (not bad), is back and will headline the competition. Joining Ross will be Elizabeth “Ebee” Price, alternate for the women’s 2012 team, and back-to-back World Cup winner last year. Also in the line up are a group of Olympic fan favorites including, 2006 World all-around champion Vanessa Ferrari, Larissa Iordache of Romania, and Elizabeth Seitz of Germany. Two more women will be named at the end of the month.
On the men’s side, things look just as bright. Olympic teammates Danell Leyva and Jake Dalton make up Team USA. Joining them are Olympic all-around silver medalist (and favorite of the lady fans) Marcel Nguyen of Germany, Olympic team bronze medalist Kristian Thomas of Great Britain, and Brazilian Sergio Sasaki, who qualified for the all-around in London.
The lineup represents one of the more competitive fields in recent memory and, for athletes like Price and Dalton, the American Cup can serve as a coming out party…if they can get past their famous teammates.
The official USA Gymnastics announcement outlines the full group of participants and event details.
So prepare yourselves, Rio is 1,302 days away, but the storylines you’ll hear about all throughout the games, start developing now. Start taking notes.
