10th Anniversary Celebrations Planned for USA’s Olympic Team Gold (18th July, 2006)

During the 2006 Visa Championships in St. Paul, Minn., USA Gymnastics will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the U.S. Women’s Team winning the team gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta. USA Gymnastics will also recognize the Roethlisberger family, Minnesota’s first family of gymnastics, for their contributions to the sport. The Roethlisbergers will be honoured on Friday August 18th, the final night of the men’s events and the 10th anniversary celebration is set for Saturday 19th August, the final night of the women’s competition.

In 1996, the U.S. Women’s Team won the United States’ first Olympic team gold medal on July 23rd. Dubbed the Magnificent Seven, the women on the U.S. Women’s Team - Amanda Borden, Amy Chow, Dominique Dawes, Shannon Miller, Dominique Moceanu, Jaycie Phelps and Kerri Strug – lived up to their billing. Millions around the world witnessed the U.S. Team’s outstanding performances that built its lead over Russia in the team competition. Strug’s valiant landing on her second vault despite an injured ankle produced one of the Games’ lasting memories. Her 9.712 vault secured the U.S. Team’s clinching the gold medal with a 389.225 total, outscoring Russia and Romania.

‘The history of these outstanding contributors to gymnastics is something we look forward to celebrating,’ said Steve Penny, president of USA Gymnastics. ‘Recognizing the contributions of individuals such as the Roethlisbergers and the women of the 1996 Olympic Team plays an important role in preserving the legacy of our sport.’

The Roethlisberger family – Fred, the father, and his three children, John, Marie and Gus – has been a part of the national gymnastics scene since the late 1960s and is recognized as Minnesota’s first family of gymnastics. Following a successful competitive career that included three 1967 Pan Am gold medals and competing in the 1968 Olympic Games, Fred guided the University of Minnesota men’s gymnastics team to 11 Big 10 titles during his 30-year tenure as head coach. John is a three-time Olympian (1992, 1996 and 2000) with four U.S. and three NCAA all-around titles to his credit. Marie was an alternate on the 1984 U.S. Women’s Olympic Team, a two-time U.S. uneven bars champ, won the NCAA’s uneven bars title in 1990 and made two World Championships teams. Gus recently retired from tumbling, where he was a former national team member, to pursue collegiate gymnastics at the University of Minnesota.