GYMNASTICS
McClure’s mission
Injuries and age won't keep Brett McClure from trying to reach the pinnacle of men's gymnastics
The last time Brett McClure visited the Islands, it was purely for pleasure. This time, he's focused on business.
This week, the veteran gymnast has the job of leading a young American contingent in the 2006 Pacific Alliance Championships that continues today and tomorrow at the Blaisdell Arena and Hawaii Convention Center.
For McClure, who in 2004 helped the United States men win their first Olympic team medal in 20 years, returning to Hawaii brings back fond memories of the last time he was here just over a year ago. That's when McClure and fellow Olympian Jaycie Phelps made Maui the site of the biggest day of their lives, getting married on a private estate on the beach in Olowalu.
"It was kind of her decision, got to try to give her the wedding of her dreams" McClure said. "She had flown out to Maui a couple of times and had always dreamed about getting married out there."
Trusting his future wife and adding that he had godparents and friends in Kihei, McClure agreed. On Feb. 10, 2005, he married Phelps, a member of the history-making 1996 U.S. Olympic "Magnificent Seven" team that took team gold in Atlanta. The two spent part of their honeymoon in Waikiki, and McClure said he's already recalling happy memories.
But even with all the nostalgia from his personal life, this week McClure's primary focus is on the mats.
Having spent the last seven and a half years on the U.S. Senior National Team, McClure is by far the most experienced gymnast for the Americans, who along with the Japanese and Chinese, are considered favorites in the men's competition.
In fact McClure, who along with Jason Gatson are the only two former Olympians currently on the national team, has been on the senior squad just as long as his three teammates in this competition have combined.
Guillermo Alvarez, David Durante and David Sender join McClure on the senior team.
For fans, it seems as if McClure has been on the gymnastics scene forever. Starting the sport at age 9, McClure grew quickly, making the Junior National Team four years later. The Mill Creek, Wash., native decided to leave home at 16, moving to the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.
"It's been quite a ride," he said. "It was kind of tough to move away from my family at such a young age, but I just made a goal for myself that I wanted to be the best."
Now at 25 and considered slightly past the prime age for male gymnasts, McClure doesn't let his age faze him as he keeps his eyes on two years down the road to the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.
After helping Team USA to a men's team silver by competing in the pommel horse and high bar in Athens, McClure had the honor of being one of two American representatives in the all-around event. Not expected to make a lot of noise, he surprised everyone by holding steady in third place going into his final, but weakest, apparatus in the still rings. But his performance in the five earlier events allowed him to finish inside the top 10.
"I had basically devoted my life to becoming an Olympian and I wasn't going to stop until I did it," McClure said. "Now that it's been done and I had such a great experience, especially in all-around finals, to be that close to winning a medal, it's what's keeping me going right now."
Staying healthy will be the ultimate test for McClure, who will be 27 when the next Olympics are held.
"It's hard, because the body just doesn't hold up as well as it used to," he said.
After suffering injuries to his left elbow, McClure sat out most of 2005, rehabbing from the surgery to repair an avulsion of the UCL and a buildup of scar tissue in the joint. He's only now getting back into the daily grind of Olympic training while his arm continues to heal.
In February's Winter Cup, his first major competition since Athens, McClure finished tied with Sender for fourth in the all-around. The top six finishers were automatically named to the 14-person national team.
"It's getting better," he said of his elbow. "It's not as strong as it used to be, but I'm able to do a lot more now than I could before the surgery. It was either retire and not get the surgery, or get the surgery and try to come back. So far it's been working out."
But after he completes tomorrow's all-around and event finals, McClure will give his elbow a much-needed rest.
"I'm actually going back to Maui after the meet on Sunday, back to Olowalu to kind of reminisce and relax for a few days," he said.
