Several Bruins look to battle it out for spot on gymnastics floor

By Christina Teller

Daily Bruin Senior Staff

With a lifetime of hard work on the line and most likely a
one-time shot at the team, this week’s U.S. Gymnastics
Olympic trials promise to be filled with heated competition.

Running from Aug. 17-20 in Boston, Mass., UCLA has four incoming
freshmen women vying for one of the six coveted spots on team USA
at the trials. The Bruins boast one-quarter of the female
competitors.

Also, two former Bruins from the men’s gymnastics team,
which was disbanded in 1993, Steve McCain (’97) and Jim Foody
(’97), will try for two of the six spots on the men’s
side at the 2000 Olympic trials.

At the 2000 U.S. Gymnastic Championships from July 26-29, the
incoming Bruins claimed three of the top five spots. Kristen
Maloney (Pen Argyl, Penn.) took second, Jamie Dantzscher (Palmdale,
Calif.) claimed third, and Alyssa Beckerman (Wyoming, Ohio) placed
fifth. The fourth incoming Bruin, Jeannette Antolin (Paradise,
Calif.) did not compete in Nationals due to an injury. She
petitioned to compete in Boston.

Others in the sweet 16 include members of the 1996 gold medal
squad: Amy Chow (sixth at nationals), Dominique Moceanu (eighth),
and Dominique Dawes (ninth). The top 12 at nationals were
guaranteed admission to the trials.

Antolin opted not to compete in Nationals because of an injury
that she aggravated over the course of the season. An MRI alerted
Antolin to five bone chips in her left ankle and a partly torn
tendon. Though it had been injured for a while, she continued to
train.

“It couldn’t have come at a worse time,” she
said in a phone interview. “I’ve been working through
it. I’m not going to give up.”

Antolin, who would be the first Latina to represent the U.S.
gymnastics squad at the Olympics if she qualifies, will compete on
Tuesday Aug. 15 in a qualifying round. She must score better than
the 12th-place mark of 72.887 at Nationals to make the Olympic
trials.

Many gymnasts have been training since they were four or five,
and their career all comes down to this. Antolin says that her
coach is trying to keep her head level and her mind-set calm.

“He tells me to stay calm and not to get too worked
up,” Antolin said of her long-time coach Don Peters. “I
just want to do my best.”

Kristen Maloney echoed this feeling in a recent interview with
NBC sports: “The most pressure is probably coming from
myself, because I know it’s a big meet coming up,” she
said. “Really, the coaches are trying to keep me calm,
actually.”

Unlike other sports, the Olympic trials are not the ultimate
deciding factor in who goes to Sydney. The selection of female
competitors is also controlled by USA Gymnastics, the
country’s governing body of gymnastics.

The scores achieved in Boston are a factor, but scores at the
U.S. Gymnastics Championships are also considered. A gymnast will
not be a team member until after she has been chosen by a selection
committee comprised of team coordinator Bela Karolyi, two coaches,
and an athlete representative. The committee’s choice must
also be approved by the president of USA Gymnastics.

The selection criteria for the men’s squad differs greatly
from that for the women. Four of the six spots will be chosen based
completely on performance at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships and
the Olympic trials. The fifth and sixth members will be selected by
the USA Gymnastics’ Men’s Program Committee in
conjunction with the coaching staff of the Olympic team.

At the U.S. Gymnastics championships, McCain finished
fourth.

“Overall I was very pleased with my performance, and now
I’m ready to move onto the next set,” he said in a
statement. “This is fuel to the fire to keep me on my toes
for trials. I like to keep the pressure on myself, and I just
wanted to get this meet under my belt.”

Up against former Olympians Blaine Wilson and John
Roethlisberger, McCain will also feel the heat.

But at the close of the week, another squad of Olympians should
be chosen as the best of the best.