Romanians, Dutch announce World team selections

Olympic floor champion Sandra Izbasa will lead a Romanian team with a good blend of youth and experience at next month's World Championships in Rotterdam.

Izbasa, who finished first on vault and floor at last weekend's Romanian Championships, will be joined by all-around champion Ana Porgras, who should be a medal contender on uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise, European beam champion Amelia Racea, Raluca Haidu and Diana Chelaru, Olympian Gabriela Dragoi, and Cerasela Patrascu.

Despite the frustrations Romanian gymnastics has had since the depature of longtime coaches Octavian Belu and Mariana Bitang in 2005, this is a strong team. If they perform well, each gymnast named above has the possibility of medaling on something as an individual.

Of these seven, only six will compete in the Netherlands (the likelihood is that Dragoi will be the alternate, though that has not been confirmed.) Romania's depth is still a problem -- these seven are the country's very best, but the level of difficulty drops sharply if they have to go outside this group.

Fortunately Romania also has two supertalented juniors -- Larissa Iordache and Diana Bulimar -- waiting in the wings. They will be a team to watch in 2012.

The World team, minus Racea, will travel to Schaffhausen, Switzerland this weekend for a pre-Worlds friendly meet with the Germans and Swiss. Romanian men to compete are Vlad Cotuna, Ovidiu Buidoso, Robert Stanescu, Cristian Bataga, Marius Berbecar and Adrian Bucur. Romanian national champion Flavius Koczi and star Marian Dragulescu will stay home.

In other news, the Dutch have announced their own World teams. Like the Romanians, an interesting mix of the young and the experienced. The women's team will be composed of two-time Olympian Suzanne Harmes, first year senior Celine van Gerner, a beam finalist at the European Championships, Joy Goedkoop, Sanne Wevers, Marlies Rijken and Wyomi Masela. Yvette Mosage is the alternate.

Veterans Epke Zonderland, Yuri van Gelder and Jeffrey Wammes will lead the men's team, which also includes Michel Bletterman, Anthony van Assche and Bart Deurloo. Carlo van Minde is the alternate.

Neither the Dutch men nor women qualified a full team to the 2008 Olympics, but both should be well within the top 24 this year, earning the chance to compete for an Olympic team berth at the 2011 World Championships. The Dutch men especially have a shot at numerous medals. Their top three -- Zonderland, van Gelder and Wammes -- are all many time World Cup medalists on their specialties. Zonderland has the possibility of medaling on parallel bars and high bar, van Gelder on rings and Wammes on floor and vault.

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