GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Collegiate regional and national championship gymnastics competition is coming to the University of Florida. The Stephen C. O’Connell Center will play host to the NCAA Southeast Gymnastics Regional Championships on April 12, 2008. UF will also serve as host for the 2010 NCAA Gymnastics Championships.
This will be the 10th NCAA Regional held in the O’Connell Center. Six teams will by vying for a finish among the top two in the regional field to advance to the 2008 NCAA Championships, set for April 24-26 in Athens, Ga. UF last played host to the event in 2005, winning its first of the last three regional team titles.
The NCAA Championships will be making its third appearance in Gainesville April 22-24, 2010. Florida also served as host to the 1986 and 1997 events. The 2010 NCAA Championships will provide gymnastics fans a different look than during the regular season, as a podium will be brought in to help showcase the competitors. A podium (the competitive apparatus is on a raised podium) was used at the 2004 and
2005 NCAA Championships and the last two Southeastern Conference Championships. The venues for the 2006 and 2007 NCAA Gymnastics Championships could not accommodate a podium.
“We are so excited to bring these two major gymnastics events to Gainesville,” UF Head Coach Rhonda Faehn said. “It will be a great opportunity for gymnastics fans to see the nation’s top competitors.”
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