Feb. 3, 2011
LAS VEGAS - The quartet of Golden Bears present at the Las Vegas Sports Center for the Winter Cup Challenge closed qualifier competition on Thursday afternoon and into the evening. Donothan Bailey, Glen Ishino and Steven Lacombe all advance to the finals on Saturday.
For complete results, please consult the USA Gymnastics' website by clicking here.
In the first session, Lacombe finished 18th overall of 32 competitors, participating in three events. The highlight of the sophomore's Thrusday were the still rings, on which he took first in his group with a 14.200. His 13.550 on floor was good for 10th place in his session while his 15.000 on vault placed him fifth.
The second stanza saw Ishino and Bailey compete.
Ishino, who petitioned for placement on the 2010 national team despite not competing at the Winter Cup, finished third in his session's all-round with an 86.900. His best event was pommel horse, on which he took second with a 14.900. Parallel bars were no dark spot for the junior tied for third (15.350). Of the six events, he finished in the top 10 on four of them, notching a sixth-place score of 15.150 on vault and tying for ninth (13.900) on rings.
Bailey finished 15th in session two, competing on all six events and scoring a collective 81.700. His best finish was sixth on rings with a 14.150. Rounding out his top events, Bailey scored 14.600 for eighth on parallel bars. He tied for ninth with a 13.900 on horizontal bar.
The top gymnasts based on points earned will advance to the finals, which are Saturday, Feb. 5. Scores from both days of competition count toward the final rankings for the all-around and individual events. Seven gymnasts will be named to the U.S. Men's senior national team based on the national team points ranking system from the Winter Cup Challenge, and one each will be selected by the Men's Program Committee and men's national team coordinator.
The six members of the 2010 U.S. Olympic Team for men's gymnastics can petition for spots, and the Men's Program Committee will name additional members to the senior national team if any Olympic positions are unused. The 15 gymnasts named to the team will comprise the U.S. Men's Senior National Team until the 2011 Visa Championships in August.
