First ever Nastia Liukin Supergirl Cup announces winner
At the inaugural Nastia Liukin Supergirl Cup held at the DCU Center in Worcester, Mass., Lexie Priessman of Cincinnati, Ohio, won the all-around title with Kassandra Lopez of Tucson, Ariz., and Diandra Milliner of Andover, Kansas, finishing in second and third, respectively. Competing were 36 gymnasts who traveled from 17 states across the country to participate. Proceeds from the event benefit the Nastia Liukin Fund, a charitable fund within the National Gymnastics Foundation.
“It was such an honor to compete here today,” said Priessman. “I am very happy that I hit four-for-four and accomplished my goal. I am so thankful for this wonderful opportunity; it was a dream for me to meet Nastia!”
“We had an amazing group of talented gymnasts participate in my first ever Supergirl Cup,” said Nastia Liukin, 2008 Olympic all-around champion. “I congratulate Lexie, Kassandra, and Diandra for their incredible performances today. They serve as an inspiration to the Supergirl in all of us.”
Priessman, who trains at Cincinnati Gymnastics Academy, won the all-around with a total score of 38.400. Her individual event scores were: 9.750, vault; 9.450, uneven bars; 9.725, balance beam; and 9.475, floor exercise. Lopez finished just 0.725 behind her. Lopez, who trains at Gym World East, posted a 9.450 on vault, a 9.425 on the uneven bars, a 9.425 on the balance beam and a 9.375 for the floor exercise. Milliner rounded out the top three with her total score of 37.400. Competing for Folgers, she earned 9.850 on vault, 9.350 on bars, 8.650 on beam and 9.550 on floor.
The 36 young women were chosen to compete in the Nastia Liukin Supergirl Cup based on performances at the 15 invitationals that comprised the Nastia Liukin Cup Series. Each invitational selected a minimum of two athletes from the respective Level 10/open fields. The Nastia Liukin Supergirl Cup is a partnership between Warner Bros. Consumer Products, USA Gymnastics and Liukin. Always aware of how much life has given her and determined to give back, Liukin is proud to host an event that helps fund the Nastia Liukin Fund. The Nastia Liukin Supergirl Cup and the accompanying Nastia Liukin Cup Series provide a unique competitive opportunity for the country’s rising female gymnasts.
With her desire to be a positive role model for young girls, Liukin enjoyed meeting the young gymnasts to share the Supergirl vision — with hard work, belief in yourself, and commitment to a dream — anything is possible. The Nastia Liukin Supergirl Cup participants received a Nastia Liukin-designed leotard and a warm-up from GK Elite; two tickets to the Tyson American Cup and recognition during that event for the Cup’s medalists. For more information, go to: www.nastialiukinsupergirlcup.com.
2010 Nastia Liukin Supergirl Cup Field
Worcester, Mass.
March 5, 2010
Final Results
All-Around
1. Lexie Priessman, Cincinnati, Ohio, 38.400
2. Kassandra Lopez, Tucson, Ariz., 37.675
3. Diandra Milliner, Andover, Kansas, 37.400
Nastia Liukin: At the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, Liukin’s total of five medals tied the U.S. gymnastics record for most medals in one Olympic Games, currently held by Mary Lou Retton (1984) and Shannon Miller (1992). Liukin’s medals are: gold – all-around; silver – team, balance beam and uneven bars; and bronze – floor exercise. Liukin is just the third U.S. woman to win the Olympic all-around crown. Liukin has nine world medals to her credit. Liukin and her teammates on the 2007 U.S. Women’s World Championships Team were selected as the 2007 U.S. Olympic Committee’s Team of the Year. Following her success in Beijing, Nastia was named the International Gymnastics Federation Athlete of the Year, Women’s Sports Foundation Individual Sportswoman of the Year, and the United States Sports Academy’s Female Athlete of the Year. In 2009, she was named USAG Athlete of the Year, USAG Sportswoman of the Year and won an ESPY for Female Athlete of the Year. With an undeniable presence on and off the mat, Nastia has secured a multitude of promotional partnerships including Covergirl, Visa, AT&T, Herbal Essences, Pure Sport, Secret, Sega and the cover of the Wheaties box. Nastia has appeared in several television projects such as the hit TV series, Gossip Girl; the documentary, USA Gymnastics: Behind the Team; and the feature film, Stick It. She was also chosen as one of 2009′s most influential women by MSN Lifestyle.
MRI Shows New Types of Injuries in Young Gymnasts
Adolescent gymnasts are developing a wide variety of arm, wrist and hand injuries that are beyond the scope of previously described gymnastic-related trauma, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
“The broad constellation of recent injuries is unusual and might point to something new going on in gymnastics training that is affecting young athletes in different ways,” said the study’s lead author, Jerry Dwek, M.D., an assistant clinical professor of radiology at the University of California, San Diego and a partner of San Diego Imaging at Rady Children’s Hospital and Health Center.
Previous studies have reported on numerous injuries to the growing portion of adolescent gymnasts’ bones. However, this study uncovered some injuries to the bones in the wrists and knuckles that have not been previously described. In addition, the researchers noted that these gymnasts had necrosis, or “early death,” of the bones of their knuckles.
“These young athletes are putting an enormous amount of stress on their joints and possibly ruining them for the future,” Dr. Dwek said. The radius is the bone in the forearm that takes the most stress during gymnastics. Due to damage to the radial growth plates, the bone does not grow in proportion to the rest of the skeleton and may be deformed. Consequently, it is not unusual for gymnasts to have a longer ulna than radius. Some former gymnasts must undergo surgery to shorten the ulna and regain the proper fit of the wrist bones into the forearm.
Dr. Dwek and coauthor Christine Chung, M.D., used MRI to study overuse injuries seen in the skeletally immature wrists and hands of gymnasts. The researchers studied wrist and hand images of 125 patients, age 12 to 16, including 12 gymnasts with chronic wrist or hand pain.
“We were surprised to be looking at injuries every step down the hand all the way from the radius to the small bones in the wrist and on to the ends of the finger bones at the knuckles,” Dr. Dwek said. “These types of injuries are likely to develop into early osteoarthritis.”
Dr. Dwek suggested that additional study is needed to understand how gymnastic stresses are causing these injuries. “It is possible that by changing the way that practice routines are performed, we might be able to limit the stress on the joints and on delicate growing bones,” he said.
AT A GLANCE
- Imaging is showing new and unusual injuries to the arms, wrists and hands of adolescent gymnasts.
- The study found that some of the gymnasts experience “early death” of a portion of their knuckle bones.
- Adolescent gymnasts with overuse injuries to the wrists, hands and knuckles will likely develop early osteoarthritis.
RSNA is an association of more than 42,000 radiologists, radiation oncologists, medical physicists and related scientists committed to excellence in patient care through education and research. The Society is based in Oak Brook, Ill. (RSNA.org)
For patient-friendly information on MRI, visit http://www.radiologyinfo.org/.
CoverGirl Flips for USA Gymnastics
Shawn Johnson, Nastia Liukin and Alicia Sacramone are the newest CoverGirls
For the first time, female athletes have been named as the face of CoverGirl cosmetics. Shawn Johnson, Nastia Liukin and Alicia Sacramone from the USA Gymnastics team were recently signed to join the CoverGirl family. As three of the biggest gymnastics stars, these athletes emulate the iconic image of the CoverGirl brand with fresh, natural beauty. Shawn, Nastia and Alicia join a roster of famous spokesmodels such as Drew Barrymore, Rihanna and Queen Latifah.
“Shawn, Nastia and Alicia are wonderful additions to the CoverGirl family, representing CoverGirl ideals of both inner and outer beauty,” said Esi Eggleston Bracey, Vice President and General Manager, CoverGirl Cosmetics in North America. “We want to honor their confidence and help them shine in the spotlight. We are thrilled they are lending their beautiful faces to CoverGirl.”
In addition to their new roles, Shawn, Nastia and Alicia received the ultimate star treatment when Molly Stern, CoverGirl’s celebrity makeup artist, created customized looks for the gymnasts to sport during the world’s premiere competitions.
“I’m excited to be working with Shawn, Nastia and Alicia,” said Molly. “I created customized looks for each of the athletes to accentuate and celebrate their natural beauty and individuality so they can be confident while competing.”
CoverGirl and Molly Stern are delighted to contribute to the gymnasts’ confidence. “The way we look is a big part of our gymnastics performance,” said Shawn, Nastia and Alicia. “If we look good, we are more confident and are able to perform better during our competitions.”
As CoverGirl brand ambassadors, Shawn Johnson, 16, of West Des Moines, Iowa; Nastia Liukin, 18, of Parker, Texas; and Alicia Sacramone, 20, of Winchester, Massachusetts will be role models for the millions of CoverGirl consumers across the country.
Since its introduction in 1961, CoverGirl has helped numerous modeling careers and was one of the first brands to link models’ names and faces with a product. The long list of famous CoverGirl models includes Drew Barrymore, Queen Latifah, Rihanna, Christie Brinkley, Cheryl Tiegs, Rachel Hunter, Tyra Banks, Niki Taylor and Molly Sims, and the brand is known for consistently signing models that embody both inner and outer beauty.
Visit www.covergirl.com for more information on CoverGirl makeup and their family of models.
Source: P&G Beauty
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