Former Buckeye Raj Bhavsar Earns Ticket to Beijing as Alternate – Ohio State Buckeyes
7/20/2008 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Gymnastics
Paul Hamm solidifies his position on 2008 U.S. Olympic team
COLUMBUS, Ohio After a week long training camp in Colorado Springs, Colo., the U.S. men’s gymnastics program has elected to take all three alternates to Beijing for the 2008 Summer Games, including Raj Bhavsar, who competed for the Scarlet and Gray from 2000-03. This will be Bhavsar’s second trip to the Olympic Games as an alternate. In 2004, the Houston, Texas, native was selected as the U.S. alternate for the Athens Games while training with Ohio State head coach Miles Avery in Columbus.
In addition, Paul Hamm, who trains in Columbus with Avery, confirmed his position on the 2008 squad, showing he was ready for competition. The reigning Olympic all-around gold medalist petitioned his way onto the U.S. team after breaking the fourth metacarpal on his right hand at the VISA Championships May 22. Hamm’s petition was granted June 21 at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Philadelphia on the basis that he would have to show competitive readiness at the U.S. team training camp.
“Both Paul and Morgan (Hamm) did well this week,” Avery, who also served as the duo’s personal coach in Athens, said. “Paul did what he needed to do to show his readiness. There are still a few skills that are a little painful for his hand so will we work around that.”
Of the six men who will represent the U.S. in Beijing, five are graduates from NCAA Division I universities, including Paul and Morgan Hamm (Ohio State), Jonathan Horton (Oklahoma), Justin Spring (Illinois) and Kevin Tan (Penn State). In addition, Horton, Spring and Tan were all collegiate athletes for their respective institutions. The sixth member of the team, Joseph Hagerty, is a product of the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.
Bhavsar, who earned an undergraduate degree from Ohio State as well, is joined by Alexander Artemev and David Durante as alternates for the U.S. squad. Bhavsar earned his alternate position, finishing in third place in all-around at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials June 21.
