Utah Utes: Gymnastics finals facing attendance woes

LINCOLN, Neb. — The NCAA women's gymnastics meet is coming to the Devaney Sports Center this week, and the overwhelming majority of the 13,000 seats will be empty.

Only 1,900 all-session tickets have been sold as of Monday. Sure, the host Nebraska Cornhuskers didn't qualify for the team competition, and the economy is tough. But Nebraska coach Dan Kendig said he predicts he'll be embarrassed by the turnout at the Thursday-to-Saturday meet.

"I take it personal," he said.

Unless there's an uptick in sales, the Lincoln championships could be the least attended since the 1989 meet drew 9,078 in Athens, Ga.

Even without Nebraska in the field, Kendig set a goal of drawing 5,000 a day, or 15,000 total.

To break even financially, Nebraska needs a total of 10,000, assistant athletic director for events Butch Hug said.

Last year's meet in Athens, where the hometown Georgia Bulldogs won their fourth straight national title, attracted 34,148. That came after the 2007 meet in Salt Lake City drew a record 36,655.

But Utah and Georgia, along with Alabama and Florida, are college gymnastics hotbeds. The sport receives scant attention elsewhere.

Greg Marsden, in his 34th year as Utah's coach, said college women's gymnastics must achieve more widespread appeal if it hopes to grow. He said that will be difficult unless the season's most important meet, the NCAA championships, becomes more fan and TV friendly.

The rub, he said, is the format.

The competition is made up of 12 teams split into two six-team sessions on the first day, with the top three in each advancing to the finals the next night.

Because there are four events in women's gymnastics, only four of the six teams are on the floor at one time during a preliminary session.

Marsden said it's difficult for spectators to know which team is leading at a given time because not every team is at a comparable point in the competition.

"For the casual observer, maybe someone who has come to the event for the first time, it can be a long and tedious and frustrating experience," Marsden said.

Retiring Georgia coach Suzanne Yoculan said, "Our sport is too hard to follow. Even I get frustrated with it."