Paul Hamm Named to 2008 U.S. Olympic Team – Ohio State Buckeyes
6/22/2008 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Gymnastics
Former Buckeye Raj Bhavsar ends team trials in third
COLUMBUS, Ohio The injured Paul Hamm, who trains at Ohio State with men’s gymnastics head coach Miles Avery, and Jonathan Horton, the 2008 Nissen-Emery Award winner, were selected to the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Saturday in Philadelphia following the conclusion of the Olympic Trials. The Waukesha, Wis., native must prove he is ready at the team’s July training camp to keep his spot on the squad.
“If I am healthy, I feel like I deserve a spot on the team,” Paull said. “I feel like I deserve to compete in Beijing.”
Raj Bhavsar, who competed for the Scarlet and Gray from 2000-03, ended the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in third with a score of 90.2 in the all-around. Despite his Top 3 finish, Bhavsar, who served as the U.S. alternate for the Athens Games while training with Avery in Columbus, will await the decision of the U.S. Men’s Gymnastics Committee to learn if his performance at the trials was enough to garner a spot on the 2008 team.
Morgan Hamm, twin brother of Paul, made his case for a position on the squad with four Top 4 finishes. Morgan finished second on high bar with a 15.23 and fourth on floor (15.0), pommel horse (14.47) and vault (15.945).
“Morgan’s in a pretty good position, finishing four events in the Top 4,” Avery said. “It’s going to be hard to deny him a spot.”
The U.S. Men’s Gymnastics Committee will announce its decision at 1:30 p.m. Sunday.
