Kupets Continues To Shine

Georgia star looks for even more medals in individual finals

April 28, 2007

By Lindsay Schnell

Special to CSTV.com

 

SALT LAKE CITY -- Of course now the only question really remaining is this: How much better can Courtney Kupets get?

 

The sophomore star from Georgia has pretty much done it all at the ripe old age of 20. She's a 10-time All-American, an SEC individual and team champion, NCAA individual champion, an Olympian and a member of the three-time NCAA team champion Bulldogs.

 


 

 

Tonight, in the individual event finals, Kupets will have another chance to add to her collection of medals. She is the defending beam and bars champion, as well as the two-time all-around champion. She defended that title on opening night of the championships when she hit all her routines, finishing with a 39.750.

 

"When you have those moments, when you know you've stuck your routine ... that's what you strive for because it doesn't happen all the time. So when you have it, you embrace them," Kupets said. "And [Thursday] was definitely one of those nights for me on bars."

 

Here's the scary part: Kupets is just a sophomore and coach Suzanne Yoculan believes she can still get better.

 

"Boy," Yoculan said shaking her head in amazement. "There's no stopping that kid. She's a mental giant. She's the mentally toughest kid I've coached in my career."

 

While Kupets shines on all events, it's really her bars routine that sets her apart from the crowd. During the championships this weekend at the University of Utah, there were whispers among the coaches about just how good Kupets is on that particular event. She's in a league of her own, they said, and everyone else is just lucky enough to watch her.

 

"You work so hard in the gym every day," Kupets said. "That's what you live for - to stand there and say, `Yes, I did it' after a good routine. There's no better feeling."

 

After the 2004 Olympics, where she won the bronze on bars and silver in team competition, Kupets could have turned pro and gone on tour. Instead she decided to join her older sister, Ashley, in Athens where she was part of one of the most dominant gymnastics teams in recent history. The Bulldogs were perfect last year and finished the season as champs.

 

This weekend was no different, though Kupets was a little out of character in Friday's Super Six: she paused slightly on beam during one series, scoring a 9.850 instead of her standard 9.900. It didn't hurt much though. Kupets finished the meet with a 9.95 on floor helped the Bulldogs earn another title.

 

"That's why Kupets is `Kupet de Ville,'" Yoculan said. "She's a fine machine and she was two days in a row. She's our Michael Jordan."