Men’s Gymnastics Signs Two U.S. National Team Members – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/27/2002 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Gymnastics
Nov. 27, 2002
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State men’s gymnastics coach Miles Avery has announced Grant Osborne and Willie Ito have signed NCAA National Letters of Intent to enroll in OSU in Fall 2003 and compete for the Buckeyes. Both signees are three-year members of the U.S. Men’s Junior National Team.
Ito, a native of Huntington Beach, Calif., competes for South Coast Gymnastics and is coached by Xiaoping Li and Guonian Wu. In the 2002 U.S. Championships in Cleveland, Ito placed fifth in the all-around and was first on high bar. He placed first in the all-around, pommel horse and parallel bars at the 2001 U.S. Championships in Philadelphia. Ito’s academic interests include athletic training and pre-medicine.
“I choose Ohio State because I enjoyed meeting the team and I know I will become a better gymnast there,” Ito said. “The coaching staff is really good and the team trains very hard. Academics are stressed in the program and that is important to me. Ohio State has a reputation of being on the top.”
Osborne, who originally is from San Diego, Calif., is coached by Vitaly Marinitch at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. Osborne placed second in the all-around and first in pommel horse at the 2002 U.S. Championships in Cleveland. In the 2001 U.S. Championships in Philadelphia, he placed fifth in the all-around. Osborne is interested in biomechanics and pre-medicine.
“At Ohio State, the coaching staff is top notch,” Osborne said. “Coach Avery, Coach Arnold Kvetenadze and Coach Doug Stibel are all great. I not only want to compete at the top of the NCAA but also for the USA. I know Ohio State will take my gymnastics to the level where I want it to be.”
“We’re very excited to have two junior national team members coming to Ohio State,” Avery said. “They both have tons of potential and have worked hard to get where they already are. They are two of the top members of our national team.”
