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John Orozco, Gymnast With Westchester Ties, Heading To Rio Olympics

CHAPPAQUA, N.Y. -- John Orozco, who trained at World Cup Gymnastics in Chappaqua for 10 years and who just made the U.S. men's Olympic team, will now be taking his training to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.

John Orozco

John Orozco

Photo Credit: Contributed

Orozco's qualifying for the team comes after he struggled this year with a second injury to his achilles tendon and is still trying to heal from the death of his mother, but as his former coach Jason Hebert from World Cup Gymnastics said, “John sets a goal for himself and he goes after it no matter what obstacles or difficulties cross his path...The goal is to medal as a team and John’s injury would not hurt his chances to make the events USA needed the most.” 

First arriving at World Cup Gymnastics in 2000, Orozco worked mostly under the tutelage of head coach Carl Schrade who set up his foundational skills. When Jason Hebert became his main coach in 2006, they began developing more high difficulty aspects. 

Orozco went on to win three consecutive Jr. Olympics titles while at World Cup. When John was selected in 2010 to train at the Olympic Training Center, Jason and Carl encouraged him to move because he needed to be pushed by a more comparable level of gymnasts. 

“John is a very humble young man,” said Hebert. "During his tenure at World Cup he was always looking to improve himself, and his passion and love for the sport made the rest of our team better. We are sad that his mother is not here to see what John has accomplished, but we know that she is looking over him now, sending him the love and encouragement that she showed him throughout his career." 

World Cup will be projecting live coverage of the Olympic gymnastics competitions on the walls of the gym so that all of John’s friends can cheer him on every step of the way.

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