Results: Juniors Day 1 | Seniors Day 1
Interviews: Lilly Lippeatt | Shania Adams | Shilese Jones
Day 1 Photo Gallery
Meet Videos
The city of Boston is hosting its first major elite gymnastics competition since Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson battled for the Visa Championship back in 2008. Home to the Boston Celtics and Bruins, the TD Garden, welcomes the countries best elite gymnasts for the biggest domestic competition of the season, the USA Championships.
As usual, the juniors took to the competition podium first on day 1 in front of a modest crowd for a Friday afternoon. Leanne Wong of Gage and her pencil straight lines leads the competition followed closely by Sunisa Lee (beautiful bar set) in second and Kayla Di Cello rounds out the top 3. Cincinnati’s Lilly Lippeatt had a good competition for her despite missing her Ray on bars but got the crowd clapping along with her routine on her last event floor. As she mentioned in her interview after podium training, Lilly is dealing with an injury that is affecting her leaps and outer rotation. However she has made it a point to smile and sell her performances to the crowd.
[highlight]”Entertaining everyone and just seeing them happy and smiling made me so happy. I shined, smiled and was happy.”[/highlight]
After falling on bars in rotation 2, Lilly hit a solid beam routine and put together four strong tumbling passes including a full in pike and 1 1/2 through to double back for a 12.35 and successful finish to first day of competition at these championships.
video by: USA Gymnastics
Next up the seniors entered the arena fully sparkled and ready to have a Boston “Tea” D Garden party of their own. The opening hype video on the jumbotron was rocking the TD Garden, literally, as the risers in media row were shaking! The athletes moved to their first rotation and got the meet movin FLOSS dance style as championships MC John Macready instructed the audience to do the dance.
Though the focus in the arena was on the Olympic Champion Simone Biles, World Champion Morgan Hurd and 2017 Jesolo all around champion Riley McCuster, our Region 5 ladies definitely were ready to take part in the party. On beam, Shania Adams wolf turned her way to a solid beam set and a 13.55 as Shilese Jones began on bars and the NBC cameramen quickly taking notice of her handstand line and speed in which she swings for a 13.95.
The momentum continued into the second rotation where Shilese not only nailed her huge standing Arabian but was solid throughout taking only a small step on her two back handsprings to double back dismount for a 13.3. Shania opened her floor set with one of the best 2 1/2 front tucks she has done in competition. Though she stepped out on her double pike, her routine was very nicely performed for a 13.0. Oh and Simone got a 15.6 on an almost perfect Cheng.
video by: USA Gymnastics
The only way to describe the third rotation is simply…. nailed it. Shania rocked and by rocked I mean stuck a Yurchenko 1/1 cold for a 13.7. Meanwhile moving over to the middle of the arena and center stage, Shilese dropped out of the sky as she tumbled as high as the third red strip from the bottom on the huge American Flag in far side of the arena. After an easy double double, she met the floor like glue on her Double Arabian and finished the third rotation with a 13.35.
Shania on doing the Yurchenko Full
[highlight]”We made the decision during morning training just to be clean and not risk anything”[/highlight]
The fourth rotation was over very quickly for our Region 5 ladies as both were first up. As Shania saluted the judge to begin her bar set, Shilese was blasting a Yurchenko double full which I had to watch on the jumbotron with one eye. She scored a 14.7 which would be the third overall score on vault (this is from the first vault attempt from all athletes not including those who did two vaults). Shania was confident for the start as she did her toe full Maloney Pak salto combination with ease. She moved back up to the high bar with Maloney 1/2, popped her Jaeger way above the bar and dropped back to earth with a solid full out for a 13.7. Three routines that need mentioning in the final rotation where Simone’s 15.2 on beam, Morgan’s 14.65 on bars, and the beautiful beam work of Kara Eaker for a 14.2.
video by: USA Gymnastics
Simone leads the field by over 3 points after day 1 (60.1) but our Region 5 ladies are both very much in the mix for the national team with Shilese in 6th (55.3) and Shania in a tie for 9th (53.75). Looking forward to more exciting gymnastics in day 2 of these championships.
