SAN JOSE, Calif. — Sam Mikulak walked down the hall after arguably the biggest day of his life, oblivious.
It wasn’t until Jonathan Horton told the laid-back 19-year-old from Southern California that he posted the highest score on the opening day of the U.S. Olympic gymnastics trials that what he’d done started to sink in.
“What?” Mikulak said. “Seriously?”
Seriously.
Mikulak solidified his spot on the five-man Olympic team with a score of 91.80 on Thursday, just ahead of Danell Leyva at 91.70 and national champion John Orozco, and well in front of the rest of the field on a day the U.S. once again showcased its depth heading to London. …
read more – ESPN – Mikulak shines on first day of gymnastics trials
Scores are higher than they’ll be in London. But nobody can deny this team is a contender in a quadrennial where the AA is critical.
And this team is young.
Here’s the all-around ranking combined (so far) …
1. Danell Leyva, Miami, Fla., 276.500
2. John Orozco, Bronx, N.Y., 275.550
3. Sam Mikulak, Newport Coast, Calif., 274.650
4. Jonathan Horton, Houston, Texas, 271.350
5. Jake Dalton, Reno, Nev., 269.550
6. Chris Brooks, Houston, Texas, 267.650
7. Paul Ruggeri, Manlius, N.Y., 263.850
8. Glen Ishino, Santa Ana, Calif., 263.050
9. Steven Legendre, Port Jefferson, N.Y., 262.800
10. C.J. Maestas, Corrales, N.M., 262.300
11. Brandon Wynn, Voorhees, N.J., 261.450
12. Alexander Naddour, Gilbert, Ariz., 260.400
If you put Horton on for Rings. And Mikulak on for Pommels (he’s decent) … that’s a pretty strong 3-up, 3-count line-up for Team.
Keep hitting Horse, Sam. š
Gymnastics Coaching.com 