Oct. 17, 2005

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - University of Illinois gymnastics standout Justin Spring (Burke, Va.) was one of six named to the World Championship team that will represent the United States in the 2005 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Melbourne, Australia, Nov. 21-27.

"Justin proved how good he is after the first day of competition," head coach Yoshi Hayasaki said. "The judges saw how good he can perform and I am positive he could have done even better on the second day if he had the chance. He is one of the few American gymnasts that can contend for a medal at the World Championships."

After the first day of the two-day event, Spring led in parallel bars with a 9.65 and in floor exercise with 9.4. The reigning VISA U.S. National high bar champion, and 2005 World Cup high bar runner-up made a slight mistake on his routine and concluded day-one with a 9.15 on the event. Spring woke up on Saturday morning with a neck strain that forced him to withdraw from competition on the second day.

"This is one of the first teams I've made through a selection process,"Spring said. "Not being able to compete on the second day and having to wait around to hear if I was selected was nerve racking. It's exciting, but now I'm going to have to train harder then I ever had in my life."

Assistant coach Jon Valdez accompanied Spring to the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., while Coach Hayasaki was on a recruiting trip in California. Valdez was not worried about Spring's neck.

"His neck will be fine in a day or two,"Valdez said. "Justin did a great job on the first day. All the countless hours of hard work are paying off for him. He is deserving of this prestigious honor and I am pleased to see the way his career is developing."

The complete U.S. Men's Team is composed of: Justin Spring of Burke, Va./University of Illinois; Sean Golden of Houston/Houston Gymnastics Academy (HGA)/GymMasters; Kevin Tan of Fremont, Calif./Penn State University; Todd Thornton of Pearland, Texas/Team Chevron; Yewki Tomita of Tucson, Ariz./Team Chevron; and Jason Gatson of Mesa, Ariz., who competes for Team Chevron. David Sender of Arlington Heights, Ill., who competes for Stanford is the alternate.