2014 Junior Olympic all-around champion (Junior Elite/16 years) Alec Yoder of Indianapolis, Ind./InterActive Academy, was chosen by the USA Gymnastics Men’s Youth Olympic Games Selection Committee to compete in the 2014 Youth Olympic Games, pending approval by the United States Olympic Committee. The 2014 Youth Olympic Games will be held Aug. 16-28 in Nanjing, China.
Alex is the grandson of Dr. Alan and Diann Yoder, Bluffton. His parents are Mike and Rebecca Yoder of Indianapolis, Ind.
At the U.S. Men’s Junior Olympic National Championships, Yoder also won the pommel horse and horizontal bar gold medals. He was part of the U.S. Team that qualified the USA for a Youth Olympic Games berth earlier this year at the 2014 Junior Pan American Gymnastics Championships in Aracaju, Brazil.
The U.S. men won the team title at the Junior Pan Am Championships, where Yoder claimed the pommel horse, still rings and parallel bars titles, along with the all-around silver medal. At the 2014 Pacific Rim Championships, the USA again won the team title, and Yoder also took home the pommel horse gold, the all-around silver and the still rings bronze medals. He also competed earlier this year at the Winter Cup Challenge.
Marty Strech of Fountain Valley, Calif./Azarian U.S. Gymnastics Training Center, was named the replacement athlete. To be considered for selection to U.S. Youth Olympic Team for men’s gymnastics, eligible gymnasts must have competed in both the Winter Cup Challenge (was held in February) and the 2014 U.S. Junior Olympic Championships (May 7-11) or have been eligible to submit a petition to be selected.
In addition to performances at the two events, the Youth Olympic Games Selection Committee also considered a number of factors, including the D (difficulty/start value) and E (execution) scores, and past domestic and international experience.
