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U.S. Gymnastics Championships come to Fort Worth ahead of 2024 Paris Olympics
For the country's top gymnasts, the road to the Paris Olympics will run through Fort Worth next year: The 2024 Xfinity U.S. Gymnastics Championships will take place at Dickies Arena, May 30-June 2, 2024.
The four-day men's and women's competition will crown national champions and determine the members of the U.S. National Team who will then compete at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Minneapolis, June 27-30, 2024.
According to a release from the Fort Worth Sports Commission (part of Visit Fort Worth), more than 150 athletes and tens of thousands of fans are expected to attend.
"Tens of thousands" might be a lean estimate considering the bold-face names expected to compete: Tokyo Olympic medalists Simone Biles, Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles, and Jade Carey; 2016 Olympic champ Gabby Douglas; and U.S. rising superstars Skye Blakely, Shilese Jones, Leanne Wong, Konnor McClain, Kayla DiCello, Zoe Miller, Joscelyn Roberson, Katelyn Jong, Lexi Zeiss, Tiana Sumanasekera, and more.
This will be the second straight Olympic year for Fort Worth to host the national championships. They were also contested at Dickies Arena in May 2021 ahead of the Tokyo Olympics; Biles won her seventh national title at the meet.
“With the incredible success of the 2021 championships, we are excited to return to Fort Worth,” USA Gymnastics chief programs officer Stefanie Korepin says in the release. “The Xfinity U.S. Gymnastics Championships will offer fans an early look at the athletes who ultimately will compete to make the 2024 Olympic team.”
Not only did Fort Worth host a successful 2021 competition, but the city is a convenient location for many of athletes and coaches. Texas has become a powerhouse state for elite gymnastics, with many of the world's top athletes now training at World Champions Centre in Spring (Biles' home gym, owned by her family); World Olympic Gymnastics Academy, or "WOGA," in Plano (owned by Olympic champ Valeri Liukin, father of 2008 gold medalist Nastia Liukin); and Texas Dreams Gymnastics in Coppell (owned by Olympian Kim Zmeskal and national team member Chris Burdette).
Dickies Arena also hosted the 2022 NCAA Gymnastics Championships and the Biles-led Gold Over America Tour following the Tokyo Olympics.
“We truly value our partnership with USA Gymnastics and we couldn’t be more excited to host this prestigious championship and welcome the best gymnasts and fans in the country to experience all Fort Worth has to offer,” says Jason Sands, executive director of the Fort Worth Sports Commission, in the release.
Tickets to the 2024 Xfinity U.S. Gymnastics Championships will go on sale later this year, organizers say.