Sooners Set for Visa Championships

Aug. 7, 2009

2009 Visa Championships
Date	Prelims.-Aug. 12 at 7 p.m.; Event Finals- Aug 14. at 7 p.m.
Location	Dallas, Texas \| American Airlines Center
Tickets	USA Gymnastics Ticket Info \| Call (800) 745-3000
Online	usa-gymnastics.org
Television	NBC Sports \| Universal Sports

NORMAN, Okla. -- Four gymnasts will represent the University of Oklahoma at the 2009 Visa Championships at the American Airlines Center, in Dallas, on Aug. 12-15. Steven Legendre, the 2009 NCAA all-around champion, former Sooners Chris Brooks and Jonathan Horton, and incoming OU freshmen Jake Dalton will compete to earn a spot on the American squad for the World Championships.

The Visa Championships, USA Gymnastics' National Championship, features the country's best gymnasts vying for national titles and spots on the U.S. National Team. Preliminary competition begins Wednesday, Aug. 12 at 7 p.m. with the all-around and event finals scheduled for 7 p.m. on Friday, Aug 14.

"It sets the stage for the next four years," said OU head coach Mark Williams. "Being close to home, Chris, Jon and Steve are excited to compete in front of a lot of their fans. I hope they have a good competition to regain their spots on the national team."

At last year's event, Horton was the runner-up in the all-around and Legendre finished second on floor exercise. Brooks competed on only four events and earned top-10 finishes on floor (15.150) and high bar (14.500).

Legendre's last national competition with the U.S. team was at the 2009 Japan Cup. He placed third on floor exercise with a score of 15.4 and finished 10th with an all-around score of 84.350.

"I'm really excited because I have been working hard all summer long," said Legendre. "Doing well at this meet is what the whole summer has been about. I can't wait to get there."

Steven Legendre Bio | Chris Brooks Bio |Jonathan Horton Bio

This year marks the Visa Championships' first visit to Dallas, and the first time the event has featured all five of USA Gymnastics' competitive disciplines - men's and women's gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline and tumbling, and acrobatic gymnastics.

USA Gymnastics will have complete coverage of the 2009 Visa U.S. Championships, including news, photos, scores and quick hit commentary, on their official Web site, usa-gymnastics.org.

NBC will broadcast the Aug. 13-14 evening sessions live on Universal Sports and the NBC Sports website. On Aug. 15, NBC (Cox Channel 3, 704 HD in Oklahoma City) will air a taped recap show of men's finals at 3 p.m. ET and the women's finals at 8 p.m. ET.

Single session ticket prices for men's and women's gymnastics range from $10-80. Tickets may be purchased by phone at (800) 745-3000; online at www.ticketmaster.com; at all Ticketmaster outlets; or at the American Airlines Center Ticket Office.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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