Sooners Help U.S. Win International Title

NORMAN — Team USA, consisting of three current and former OU gymnasts along with U.S. coach and former OU assistant coach Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons, took home the team title Sunday in Lima, Peru, at the 2018 Pan American Gymnastics Championships.

With a final tally of 246.000, Team USA bested Colombia (243.999) and Brazil (243.301) in the international competition, amongst 14 other countries. With the victory, Team USA qualifies for next summer's 2019 Pan American Games, also to be held in Lima.

“It was a significant win for the U.S. men's team at the Pan Am Championships,” Oklahoma head coach Mark Williams said. “Three senior team members and two junior team members won the championships for the U.S., going away.”

“Having three representatives from the Oklahoma gymnastics program was a great example of what we try to do, which is getting our gymnasts out on the world stage.”
OU head coach Mark Williams

In Friday's individual competition, Sooners' senior Genki Suzuki, competing in his first international competition for the U.S., placed fourth in the all-around (81.033), including a first-place finish on pommel horse. OU alum Kanji Oyama claimed four top-15 event finishes, including seventh-place spots on pommel horse and parallel bars. Oklahoma freshman and junior national team member Spencer Goodell competed in two events, tallying an 11.533 on high bar and 13.433 on vault in his first senior-level competition. Along with the fourth-place finish in the all-around and pommel horse gold medal, Suzuki finished in the top 15 in three other events.

“Having three representatives from the Oklahoma gymnastics program was a great example of what we try to do, which is getting our gymnasts out on the world stage. I'm very pleased with the results and happy with the guys who competed this weekend.”

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