INDIANAPOLIS, Feb. 27, 2017 – 2016 U.S. junior all-around champion Shane Wiskus of Spring Park, Minn./Mini-Hops Gymnastics, 2016 Junior Pan American team and floor gold medalist Vitaliy Guimaraes of Arvada, Colo./5280 Gymnastics, 2016 U.S. junior still rings bronze medalist Max Andryushchenko of Chicago, Ill./Lakeshore Academy of Gymnastics, and 2013 NCAA floor champion Trevor Howard of Columbus, Ohio/Pennsylvania State University, are among the nine senior elite male gymnasts who will compete alongside junior elite men’s regional teams at the 2017 Elite Team Cup at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., at 6 p.m. ET on March 4. The Elite Team Cup is held in conjunction with the 2017 AT&T American Cup, an International Gymnastics Federation World Cup event that features some of the world’s biggest names in gymnastics and will be held earlier on March 4 at 11:30 a.m. ET, and the Nastia Liukin Cup, which showcases many of the country’s best Junior Olympic female gymnasts and is slated for 7 p.m. ET on March 3. The Elite Team Cup will be webcast live at usagym.org and the USA Gymnastics YouTube channel.

The Elite Team Cup features nine men’s Regional Teams, each consisting of six junior elite gymnasts and one senior elite athlete. Team scores for the Elite Team Cup will be based on five athletes competing on each event with the top four scores on each event counting. In addition, there is prize money for the results in the Senior Elite All-Around (all six events counting). Finally, results will be kept for the junior-athlete-only Regional Elite Team results – based on the top three junior elite scores on each event – that will serve as the basis for the 2018 draft.

The nine senior elite gymnasts are: Andryushchenko; Brandon Briones of Gilbert, Ariz./USA Youth Fitness Center; Guimaraes; Howard; Griffin Kehler of Frisco, Texas/WOGA Gymnastics; Jacob Moore of West Bloomfield, Mich./Twistars USA; Brett Miller of Tucson, Ariz./Gymnastics World Central; Nathan Tsuji of Aptos, Calif./University of Washington and Wiskus.

The senior men are vying for total of $6,000, which will be distributed to the top six finishers in the senior all-around standings: 1. $2,000; 2. $1,500; 3. $1,000; 4. $600; 5. $500; and 6. $400.

2016 U.S. junior all-around silver medalist Bennett Huang of Palo Alto, Calif./West Coast Olympic Gymnastics Academy is scheduled to compete in Newark, and several 2016 Junior Elite Level 10 medalists are on regional teams including: Cutter Fugett of Boulder, Colo./5280 Gymnastics, 17-year-old bronze medalist; Brody Malone of Cedartown, Ga./Cartersville Twisters, 15-year-old silver medalist; and David Pochinka of Plano, Texas/WOGA, 15-year-old bronze medalist.

A complete regional team roster is included below

The junior elite gymnasts must be between 13-18 years of age as of May 31, 2017, and will be selected from the Regional Elite Team Program. The Junior Elite gymnasts will follow the USA Gymnastics Level 10 Age Group Competition Program rules, with the senior gymnasts competing under the International Gymnastics Federation rules.

Ticket pricing for both the Nastia Liukin Cup and the Elite Team Cup is the same. Tickets are $40 for reserved seating and $30 for general admission. For groups of 10+ people, tickets are half-price – $20 reserved or $15 for general admission. Groups also can purchase tickets for both events for $25 reserved or $20 general admission. All ticket prices are plus applicable fees. Tickets may be purchased through ticketmaster.com, by phone at 800-745-3000, at all Ticketmaster outlets and at Prudential Center’s box office.

Held annually in conjunction with the AT&T American Cup, the Nastia Liukin Cup is named after Nastia Liukin, the 2008 Olympic all-around champion who has five Olympic and nine World medals to her credit. The annual event features 36 gymnasts who qualify through the Nastia Liukin Cup Series, which includes many of the country’s top invitationals held throughout January and February. A total of 18 junior and 18 senior gymnasts will advance to the Nastia Liukin Cup. Senior athletes must be 16 years of age or older, and junior athletes must be 15 or younger.

2016 Olympic replacement athlete Ragan Smith of Lewisville, Texas/Texas Dreams, 2017 Winter Cup champion Yul Moldauer of Arvada, Colo./University of Oklahoma, and 2016 Olympic replacement athlete and U.S. parallel bars bronze medalist Akash Modi of Morganville, N.J./Stanford University, will represent the USA at the 2017 AT&T American Cup, which is the USA’s most prestigious international invitational and part of the International Gymnastics Federation’s all-around World Cup series that is slated for March 4 at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. The USA will have an additional women’s athlete competing as a wildcard entry, which will be announced soon. All U.S. athletes are expected to show competitive readiness prior to the event.

Tickets are available for the AT&T American Cup, the USA’s most prestigious international invitational and part of the International Gymnastics Federation’s all-around World Cup series. Tickets may be purchased through ticketmaster.com, by phone at 800-745-3000, at all Ticketmaster outlets, as well as at Prudential Center’s box office. For group sales (10+ people) information, please call Prudential Center’s Group Sales department at 973-757-6250. For additional information, please go to americancup.com.

Background information

• AT&T American Cup. The 2017 AT&T American Cup, a FIG World Cup event, is one of the most prestigious international invitational events and features an all-around format. The list of former champions comprises some of the sport’s best-known names, including Simone Biles, Jordyn Wieber, Nastia Liukin, Jonathan Horton, Bart Conner, Paul Hamm, Shawn Johnson, Shannon Miller, Carly Patterson, Mary Lou Retton and Peter Vidmar. For more information go to americancup.com.

• Prudential Center. Prudential Center is a world-class sports and entertainment venue located in downtown Newark, New Jersey. Opened in October 2007, the state-of-the-art arena is the home of the National Hockey League’s (NHL) three-time Stanley Cup Champion New Jersey Devils, Seton Hall University’s NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball program, and more than 175 concerts, family shows and special events each year. Ranked in the Top 10 nationally by Pollstar, Billboard and Venue’s Today, Prudential Center is recognized as one of the premier venues in the United States, and welcomes more than 1.75 million guests annually. For more information about Prudential Center, visit PruCenter.com and Facebook, and follow @PruCenter on Twitter.

• USA Gymnastics. Based in Indianapolis, USA Gymnastics is the national governing body for gymnastics in the United States. Its mission is to encourage participation and the pursuit of excellence in the sport. Its disciplines include men’s and women’s artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline and tumbling, acrobatic gymnastics and Gymnastics for All (formerly known as group gymnastics). For more complete information, log on to www.usagym.org.

Elite Team Cup field roster
By state, alphabetically (name, hometown/state/club, region)

Arizona
Brandon Briones, Gilbert, Ariz./USA Youth Fitness Center, Region 1
Angel Leon, Tucson, Ariz./Gymnastics World Central, Region 1
Brett Miller of Tucson, Ariz./Gymnastics World Central, Region 7

California
Bennett Huang, Palo Alto, Calif./West Coast Olympic Gymnastics Academy, Region 1
Riley Loos, El Dorado Hills, Calif./Technique Gymnastics, Region 1
Samuel Phillips, Woodland Hills, Calif./Gymnastics Olympica USA, Region 1
Nathan Tsuji of Aptos, Calif./University of Washington, Region 8

Colorado
Taylor Burkhart, Morrison, Colo./5280 Gymnastics, Region 9
Cutter Fugett, Boulder, Colo./5280 Gymnastics, Region 9
Vitaliy Guimaraes, Arvada, Colo./5280 Gymnastics, Region 9

Connecticut
Kevin Portofee, Norwich, Conn./Thames Valley Academy of Gymnastics, Region 6

Florida
Travis Wong, Miami, Fla./Universal Gymnastics Inc., Region 8

Georgia
Ethan Esval, Roswell, Ga./Roswell Gymnastics, Region 8
Brody Malone, Cedartown, Ga./Cartersville Twisters, Region 8

Idaho
Colton Dee, Star, Idaho/Danik Gymnastics, Region 2
Ryker Shaw, Rexburg, Idaho/Madison Gymnastics Center, Region 2

Illinois
Max Andryushchenko of Chicago, Ill./Lakeshore Academy of Gymnastics, Region 5
Paul Juda, Deerfield, Ill./Buffalo Grove Gymnastics Center, Region 5
Curran Phillips, Naperville, Ill./Prairie Gymnastics Club, Region 5
Josh Seltzer, Deerfield, Ill./Buffalo Grove Gymnastics Center, Region 5

Indiana
Russell Johnson, Indianapolis, Ind./DeVeau’s School of Gymnastics, Region 5

Maryland
Dhiren Lutchman, Beltsville, Md./Paragon National Training Center, Region 7

Massachusetts
Addison Chung, Medfield, Mass./Massachusetts Elite Gymnastics Academy, Region 6
Liam Doherty-Herwitz, Bedford, Mass./Brestyan’s American Gymnastics, Region 6
Ian Lasic-Ellis, Dover, Mass./Massachusetts Elite Gymnastics Academy, Region 6
Johnny Liu, Wayland, Mass./New England Academy of Gymnastics, Region 6

Michigan
Michael Jaroh, Northville, Mich./Michigan Elite Gymnastics Academy, Region 5
Jacob Moore of West Bloomfield, Mich./Twistars USA, Region 6

Minnesota
Henry Meeker, Minneapolis, Minn./Mini-Hops Gymnastics, Region 4
Shane Wiskus of Spring Park, Minn./Mini-Hops Gymnastics, Region 4
Blake Wright, Rosemount, Minn./TAGS South Gymnastics, Region 4

Nevada
Brennan Pantazis, Sparks, Nev./Gymnastics Nevada, Region 1

New Jersey
Cannon Johnson, Teaneck, N.J./US Gymnastics Develop Center II, Region 7
Eric Lung, North Brunswick, N.J./Surgent’s Elite Gymnastics, Region 7

New York
Kevin Penev, Penfield, N.Y./RGA, Region 7

North Carolina
Stewart Brown, Taylorsville, N.C./Foothills Gymnastics, Region 8
David Willett, High Point, N.C./High Point Gymnastics Academy, Region 8

Ohio
Trevor Howard of Columbus, Ohio/Pennsylvania State University, Region 2

Oklahoma
Gage Dyer, Yukon, Okla./Bart Conner Gymnastics Academy, Region 3

Oregon
Spencer Goodell, Tigard, Ore./Oregon Metropolitan Elite Gymnastics Academy, Region 2
Peyton Hobson, Salem, Ore./Oregon Metropolitan Elite Gymnastics Academy, Region 2

Pennsylvania
Alexander Frack, Nazareth, Pa./Parkettes National Gymnastics Center, Region 7
Evan Kriley, Saxonburg, Pa./Pittsburgh Northstars, Region 8

Texas
Evan Davis, Houston, Texas/Cypress Academy of Gymnastics, Region 3
Ian Gunther, Houston, Texas/Cypress Academy of Gymnastics, Region 3
Griffin Kehler of Frisco, Texas/WOGA Gymnastics, Region 3
David Pochinka, Plano, Texas/WOGA Gymnastics, Region 3
Alexei Vernyi, Cypress, Texas/Cypress Academy of Gymnastics, Region 3
Josh Williams, Cypress, Texas/Cypress Academy of Gymnastics, Region 3

Utah
Taylor Christopulos, Layton, Utah/USA Gymnastics World, Region 9
Dillan King, Eagle Mountain, Utah/USA Gymnastics World, Region 9
Scott McMurray, North Salt Lake, Utah/USA Gymnastics World, Region 9

Vermont
Nikita Bolotsky, Saint Johnsbury, Vt./Kingdom Gymnastics, Region 6

Virginia
Sean Neighbarger, Virginia Beach, Va./Gymstrada Gymnastic School, Region 7

Washington
Troy Jenkins, Olympia, Wash./Black Hills Gymnastics, Region 2
Nicolas Kuebler, Seattle, Wash./Metropolitan Gymnastics, Region 2

Wisconsin
Casimir Buske of Madison, Wis./ Salto Gymnastics, Region 4
Jacob Schroeder, Waukesha, Wis./Swiss Turners Gymnastics Academy, Region 4
Colin Schwartz, Pleasant Prairie, Wis./Scamps Gymnastics, Region 4