JORDYN WIEBER WINS NATIONAL TITLE

Talent is a starting point, but many athletes are talented. A great work ethic will plow a positive path towards success but many athletes have adopted that strategy. Desire and determination will separate the great athletes from the good ones, but once again there are seemingly countless inspired and motivated athletes at the elite level. What makes an ELITE NATIONAL CHAMPION? The answer is simple. It takes a fierce competitor with the ability to rise to the challenge when the green flag is raised. It takes a special combination of talent, desire, focus and day to day application of all 3. It takes an unmatched hunger to succeed. Jordyn Wieber exemplifies those traits and so much more. Jordyn Wieber became one of the youngest USA NATIONAL CHAMPIONS since Kim Zmeskal in 1989, by displaying consistently the ability to shine when it counts. Jordyn owned the CHAMPIONSHIPS of the USA in Boston where she outdistanced a very tough field by more than 1.5 points (simply remarkable considering this is a sport of tenths of a point). This is Jordyn’s third straight qualification to the USA National team, but winning the Jr. National All Around Title is something that will always highlight her career resume. This is a shining moment. The format for crowning the national champion includes 2 days of competition. After day 1 Jordyn held the lead by one tenth of a point over Samantha Shapiro (who many considered the odds on favorite). Samantha opened the door with a falter on floor exercise. Jordyn walked through that door and locked it behind her, nailing routine after routine and posting a 60.65. Her All Around title also included individual event titles on Vault-14.7/14.95 (where she was one of 2 juniors in the country to perform a double twist) and Floor 15.05/15.25. She also placed 2nd on Beam 15.15/15.45 and 3rd on Bars 15.05/15.0. Jordyn follows in the footsteps of such great Jr. National Champions as Shawn Johnson, Kim Zmeskal, Natasha Kelly, Nastia Liukin, Morgan White, all of which eventually earned Olympic or World Team positions for the USA Team. Jordyn has now etched her name in the USA record books in the company of gymnastics royalty. We are so proud of her, her accomplishments and most importantly the road she took to get there.