Fort Worth to Host U.S. Gymnastics Championships

In 2020, the U.S. Gymnastics Championships will make its first appearance in Fort Worth, Texas, when the national championships heads to Dickies Arena June 4-7.  This is just the fourth time the event has been held in Texas.  The U.S. Championships determines the men’s and women’s U.S. champions and U.S. National Teams for the junior and senior elite levels.  In 2020, performances at the U.S. Championships will play a major role in determining which athletes advance to the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Gymnastics, June 25-28, in St. Louis, Mo.

“The 2020 U.S. Championships is literally the last stop before the Olympic Trials, and the four-day competition will play a pivotal part in selecting the gymnasts who will advance to the trials,” said Stefanie Korepin, chief programs officer for USA Gymnastics.  “This is an incredible opportunity for gymnastics and sports fans in Texas to see, in person, the country’s, and some of the world’s, best gymnasts.  The Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area and the state of Texas have great gymnastics communities and have produced a number of World and Olympic medalists, including Carly Patterson, who won the 2003 World team and 2004 Olympic all-around titles.  We hope everyone will come watch our athletes compete, including those who may be on their way to Tokyo.”

The Fort Worth Sports Commission and Dickies Arena are the local partners for the 2020 U.S. Championships.  Patterson, who lives in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, attended the official announcement.

“Being selected as the host city for the 2020 U.S. Gymnastics Championships is a huge win for Fort Worth as the nation gears up for the Summer Olympics,” said Jason Sands, director of the Fort Worth Sports Commission. “Our community is excited to showcase the city and Dickies Arena’s state-of-the-art facility to the fans, athletes and coaches of this prestigious sport.”

“Fort Worth has continued to show its ability to host major national sporting events, and we are thrilled to assist in bringing the U.S. Gymnastics Championships to this city in 2020,” said Matt Homan, who is with Trail Drive Management Corp. and serves as president and general manager of Dickies Arena.  “We look forward to working closely with USA Gymnastics and our friends with the Fort Worth Sports Commission to create the best experience for our guests and the world-class athletes competing at Dickies Arena ahead of the 2020 Olympics.”

Tickets for the four-day championships are expected to go on sale in the near future.  The tentative competition schedule, which is subject to change, is below.  All times are Central.

• Thursday, June 4: Men’s gymnastics – 12:30 p.m., juniors, and 6 p.m., seniors
• Friday, June 5: Women’s gymnastics – 1 p.m., juniors, and 6:30 p.m., seniors
• Saturday, June 6: Men’s gymnastics – 1 p.m., seniors, and 7 p.m., juniors
• Sunday, June 7: Women’s gymnastics – 12 p.m., juniors, and 5:30 p.m., seniors

The U.S. Championships determines the U.S. junior and senior champions for the all-around and individual events for men’s and women’s gymnastics, as well as the members of the junior and senior national teams.  At the 2019 U.S. Championships, both 2016 Olympic all-around champion Simone Biles of Spring, Texas/World Champions Centre, and two-time Olympian Sam Mikulak of Newport Coast, Calif./U.S. Olympic Training Center, won their sixth U.S. women’s and men’s all-around titles, respectively.  Recently, Biles won her fifth World all-around title and a total of five gold World medals, setting a new record of 25 for most World gymnastics medals won by a female or male gymnast.

In addition to Biles, current national men’s and women’s team members who live in or have ties with Texas include Sydney Barros, Lewisville/Texas Dreams; Fuzzy Benas, Richmond/EnRich Gymnastics; Skye Blakely, Frisco/WOGA; Garrett Braunton, Cypress/Cypress Academy of Gymnastics; Sophia Butler, Houston/Discover Gymnastics; Jordan Chiles, Houston/World Champions Centre; Asher Hong, Tomball/Cypress Academy; Colt Walker, Cedar Park/AcroTex Gymnastics; and Colin Van Wicklen, Magnolia/University of Oklahoma.

The U.S. Gymnastics Championships was last held in Texas in 2009 when it was staged at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.  Houston has hosted the event twice, both times in the Olympic year (1988, 2008). In addition to Patterson, some well-known gymnasts who have called Texas home include Olympic all-around champions Mary Lou Retton, Nastia Liukin and Biles; Olympic medalists Mohini Bhardwaj, Raj Bhavsar, Kim Zmeskal Burdette, Jonathan Horton, Madison Kocian, Julianne McNamara, Phoebe Mills, Dominique Moceanu, Betty Okino and Kerri Strug; and World medalists Chris Brooks, Rebecca Bross, Ivana Hong, Steve Legendre, Ragan Smith, Kurt Thomas and Hollie Vise.

The roster of former U.S. all-around champions is a veritable who’s who of gymnastics, including: women – Jordyn Wieber, Liukin, Shawn Johnson, Patterson, Courtney Kupets, Shannon Miller, Dominique Dawes, Zmeskal and Retton; and men – Horton, Paul Hamm, Blaine Wilson, John Roethlisberger, Mitch Gaylord, Peter Vidmar and Bart Conner.  The U.S. Gymnastics Championships traces its history back to 1897 for the men and 1931 for the women.

• Fort Worth Sports Commission.  The Fort Worth Sports Commission advances the city as an international sports destination.  A division of Visit Fort Worth, the Sports Commission attracts youth, collegiate and professional events that deliver economic impact and boost Fort Worth’s image.  The Commission supports development of and access to facilities that enhance the quality of life for all Fort Worth.  Upcoming events include National Collegiate Gymnastics Championships, USA Table Tennis US Open, USA Wrestling Senior Nationals and the AAC Men’s Basketball Championships.  For more information, visit www.FortWorth.com/Sports. Official announcement launching the Fort Worth Sports Commission coming November 2019.
• Dickies Arena.  Dickies Arena will be a 14,000 seat, spectacular multipurpose venue located adjacent to the Will Rogers Memorial Center campus in Fort Worth, Texas.  The facility is the result of a pioneering public-private partnership between the City of Fort Worth, Tarrant County, the State of Texas and a group of private-sector participants, including foundations, individuals and organizations. The arena will be owned by the City of Fort Worth and managed by the not-for-profit operating entity, Trail Drive Management Corp. (TDMC).  The state-of-the-art arena will host concerts, sporting events and family entertainment, and will be the new home to Fort Worth Stock Show Rodeo performances.  For more information, visit www.DickiesArena.com.
• USA Gymnastics. Based in Indianapolis, USA Gymnastics is the national governing body for gymnastics in the United States.  The organization is committed to creating a culture that encourages and supports its athletes and focuses on its highest priority, the safety and well-being of the athletes. USA Gymnastics has taken specific, concrete steps to strengthen its athlete safety policies and procedures, including adopting the updated USA Gymnastics Safe Sport Policy.  Former gymnast and business executive Li Li Leung is the new president and chief executive officer of USA Gymnastics.  The organization’s disciplines include men’s and women’s artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline and tumbling, acrobatic gymnastics and gymnastics for all (formerly known as group gymnastics).  For more complete information, visit usagym.org.