Air Force Academy

Jan. 13, 2010

USAF ACADEMY, Colo. - Three members of the Air Force men's gymnastics team were selected to compete at the prestigious Winter Cup Challenge in early February, USA Gymnastics announced this week (Jan. 13). Junior Nash Mills, sophomore Joel Uptmor and freshman Tory Brown will become the first Air Force gymnasts in six years to compete at the Winter Cup Challenge in Las Vegas, Nev.

With the selection to the 2010 meet, these three gymnasts have matched the number of Air Force invitees to the Winter Cup from the last 20 years combined. Only two Academy gymnasts have competed at the Winter Cup Challenge, as Jeff Andersen competed in the all-around in 2004 and Joel Miller participated on the still rings in 1992. Former Falcon Greg Stine was invited to compete at the 2007 meet, but was forced to withdraw due to injury.

Over 100 gymnasts were selected to compete at the two-day meet, including members of the current Senior National Team and Junior Elite National Team. Air Force, the only service academy to send gymnasts to the 2010 Winter Cup, will be joined by 11 gymnasts from the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.

Mills is coming off of a stellar sophomore campaign, which saw him advance to the NCAA Championships in the all-around and ranked among the nation's top 20. Uptmor had a strong freshman season, earning USAG All-America honors on the floor exercise and setting a then-Academy record on the vault. As a club gymnast, Brown was the 2009 Oregon state gymnasts champion and a three-time junior national qualifier.

The Winter Cup Challenge, which will be held at the Las Vegas Sports Center, begins on Thursday, Feb. 4, with three sessions of preliminary competitions. The top 42 athletes from the first day will advance to the finals, which will be held on Saturday, Feb. 6.

QUOTES

Kip Simons, Air Force Head Coach
"Having three cadets selected to the Winter Cup shows the continued, upward direction of our program. Seeing Nash, Joel and Tory out on the floor, competing against Olympians at the Winter Cup, is a tremendous honor and testament to their commitment to excellence."

"Ultimately, I want to have athletes representing our institution at the national, and possibly international, level. After four years at USAFA, I am now convinced that these gymnasts have the opportunity to compete at the highest level, while pursuing a career that sets them up for life after gymnastics."

Nash Mills, Junior Gymnast
"I am very excited to be part of a program that has supported me and given me the opportunity to compete at one of the highest levels in U.S. gymnastics. It is an honor to be able to represent the Air Force Academy in such a prestigious competition. I believe the fact that three of our program's gymnasts have been selected really shows that this team is headed on up."

Joel Uptmor, Sophomore Gymnast
"Competing at the Winter Cup Challenge is taking me one step closer to reaching the goal that I have had since I started my gymnastics career: to compete for the national team. Being considered one of the top 100 senior athletes in this sport is nothing to be taken lightly. It means a lot of hard work ahead; but hard work that will hopefully soon be met with reward. It's an honor to have been accepted to such a prestigious competition and to be competing among some of the world's finest."

"Being one of the few gymnasts from Air Force to ever compete at the Winter Cup Challenge, brings an even greater sense of honor. Kip and Brett have done a lot of great things for this team and the Air Force gymnastics program. We have all put forth maximum effort to get where we are today, and it is time to represent Air Force and show what we can do. Not only that, but to show where we are going."

Tory Brown, Freshman Gymnast
"Competing at the 2010 Winter Cup Challenge will be an awesome opportunity for me. Not only will it give me the opportunity to experience competition at the senior level, amongst some of the nation's best gymnasts, but it also makes all of the commitment and hard work over the past 10 years more than worth it. I'm extremely honored and proud to represent USAFA at such a prestigious meet. This kind of opportunity really shows that our gymnastics program is heading in a positive direction and I can't wait to see where we'll be in the next few years."