ANAHEIM, California, 29 June 2004 — United States co-champion Courtney Kupets and Courtney McCool claimed the top women’s all-around spots at the US Olympic trials here Sunday to ensure themselves berths at the Athens Olympics.
Barring injury, they will lead the six-woman squad that will try to bring home a gold medal in Greece the same way they did a world team title here last year.
Kupets won with 75.750 points with McCool second at 75.625 and US national co-champion Carly Patterson third at 75.500 but leading the list of those likely to fill out the final roster.
Patterson was second in the all-around here at last year’s world meet.
The US women’s team will not be named until after a private camp next month on the Texas ranch of Bela and Marta Karolyi.
Because Olympic scoring will not allow any scores to be dropped, team titles could depend upon event specialists, so those among the US hopefuls who can boost the weak points of the leaders’ events have a chance to get the call.
Hollie Vise, for instance, was a world co-champion at the uneven bars.
Others hoping for a chance to compete at the final camp include two 25-year-olds — Annia Hatch and Mohini Bhardwaj.
Hatch is a seven-time Cuban champion hoping to represent her new homeland while Bhardwaj was struggling to finance her Olympic dream until actress Pamela Anderson wrote a $20,000 check to cover her expenses.
On the men’s side, world and US all-around champion Paul Hamm and Brett McClure led the all-around to clinch Athens berths on Saturday, while Jason Gatson and Morgan Hamm were named by the Olympic Team Selection Committee.
Four more men must be named to the team from a seven-man training squad. They will selected after a camp July 10-18 in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
