World, Olympic champions headline field for 2020 American Cup
Note: Canada’s Rene Cournoyer was added to the field on Feb. 4.
Great Britain’s Jennifer Gadirova replaced Amelie Morgan on Feb. 6
China’s Hu Xuwei replaced Deng Shudi on Feb. 10
France’s Lorette Charpy replaced Claire Pontlevoy on Feb. 10
Spain’s Alba Petisco replaced Roxana Popa on Feb. 11
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind., Jan. 23, 2020 — The lineup of the FIG All-Around World Cup in Milwaukee is a who’s who of Olympic contenders. The talented field will provide fans a snapshot of the gymnastics to watch in the six-month lead-up to the 2020 Olympic Games. Representing the United States at the 2020 American Cup, scheduled for March 7 at Fiserv Forum in downtown Milwaukee, Wis., are Morgan Hurd, the 2017 World All-Around Champion and the 2018 American Cup winner; Kayla DiCello, the 2019 U.S. junior champion, who is making her senior international debut; Sam Mikulak, Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Olympic Training Center; and Yul Moldauer of Arvada, Colo./University of Oklahoma, the 2017 World Floor bronze medalist and three-time defending American Cup champion.
The American Cup, the USA’s most prestigious international invitational and part of the International Gymnastics Federation’s all-around World Cup series, will also feature World all-around champion Nikita Nagornyy of Russia; and Olympic gold medalist Oleg Verniaiev of Ukraine.
The 2020 American Cup field by country is listed below.
Men
Brazil: Diogo Soares
Canada: Rene Cournoyer
China: Hu Xuwei
Chinese Taipei: Chih-Kai Lee
Germany: Andreas Toba
Great Britain: James Hall
Japan: Daiki Hashimoto
Russia: Nikita Nagornyy
Spain: Nestor Abad
Switzerland: Pablo Braegger
Ukraine: Oleg Verniaiev
United States: Sam Mikulak
United States: Yul Moldauer (Wild Card)
Women
Australia: Georgia Godwin
Canada: Brooklyn Moors
China: Jin Zhang
France: Lorette Charpy
Germany: Sarah Voss
Great Britain: Jennifer Gadirova
Italy: Giorgia Villa
Japan: Hitomi Hatakeda
Russia: Lilia Akhaimova
Spain: Alba Petisco
Ukraine: Diana Varinska
United States: Morgan Hurd
United States: Kayla DiCello (Wild Card)
The U.S. gymnasts enjoyed a strong 2019. They have also dominated the American Cup, winning seven of the last 10 men’s titles and 18 of the last 20 women’s all-around contests. 2017 World All-Around champion Hurd and 2019 U.S. junior champion Kayla Di Cello, who will make her senior international debut in Milwaukee, will attempt to carry the tradition forward. And Yul Moldauer will try to become the first man to win four in a row this year.
Event information
The American Cup, the USA’s most prestigious international gymnastics competition, will make its first visit to Milwaukee on Saturday, March 7, 2020 at Fiserv Forum. The 2020 American Cup is the first of the four all-around events included in the International Gymnastics Federation’s World Cup Series, which is part of Olympic qualification for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. This year’s American Cup has two sessions: the women at 11 a.m. CT and the men at 4 p.m. CT. The Nastia Liukin Cup, which showcases some of the country’s top Junior Olympic female gymnasts, is slated for Friday, March 6, 2020, at 7 p.m. CT. All-session tickets are on sale now at FiservForum.com.
All-session ticket packages range in price from $77-$179 and include the Nastia Liukin Cup on Friday, March 6, 2020 and the American Cup sessions on Saturday, March 7, 2020. Discounted tickets are available through local gymnastics clubs that are participating in the club ticket sales program. For information on club sales or group tickets, call 414-227-0599.
The impressive list of former American Cup champions also includes Simone Biles, Bart Conner, Tim Daggett, Gabby Douglas, Paul Hamm, Jonathan Horton, Shawn Johnson, Nastia Liukin, Carly Patterson, Danell Leyva, Shannon Miller, Mary Lou Retton, Kurt Thomas, Peter Vidmar, Jordyn Wieber and Kim Zmeskal-Burdette. Past sites for the American Cup include: New York, N.Y. (1976-80, 1982-84, 2004, 2008, 2012); Ft. Worth, Texas (1981, 1996-98); Indianapolis, Ind. (1985); Fairfax, Va. (1986-90, 2003); Orlando, Fla. (1991-94, 2000-02); Seattle, Wash. (1995); St. Petersburg, Fla. (1999); Uniondale, N.Y. (2005); Philadelphia, Pa. (2006); Jacksonville, Fla. (2007, 2011); Hoffman Estates, Ill. (2009, 2018); Worcester, Mass. (2010, 2013); Greensboro, N.C. (2014); Arlington, Texas (2015); Newark (2016-17); Hoffman Estates, Illinois (2018); and Greensboro, North Carolina (2019).
The Nastia Liukin Cup made its debut in 2010. Past sites include 2018, Hoffman Estates, Ill.; 2016 and 2017, Newark, N.J.; 2015, Arlington, Texas; 2014, Greensboro, N.C.; 2013 and 2010, Worcester, Mass.; 2012, New York City; and 2011, Jacksonville, Fla. The Elite Team Cup debuted in 2016 in Newark, N.J., returned to Newark in 2017, was in Hoffman Estates, IL in 2018 and Greensboro, N.C. in 2019.
This press release originally appeared on usagym.org.
