Gymnast wins Junior National Championship
Eighth grader, Elizabeth T., is best in the nation in her age class
By Patrycja M.

Many people long to meet and know a famous person, someone like an actor, singer, or athlete. For quite a few people, this is an unrealized dream. That's not the case, however, for the many Peacock students, teachers, and staff who already know eighth grader Liz T.
On May 7, Liz joined the ranks of the nation's elite young gymnasts when she took the overall first place in the U.S. Junior Olympic National Championships held at Michigan State University in Lansing.
Liz's first place finish earned her a spot on the Junior Olympic National Team. She will attend a special camp in Colorado Springs with some of the country's top coaches.
Liz will leave for the Olympics Training Center on Friday, June 26, and return the following Tuesday. Liz commented that although she is looking forward to camp, she is "kinda' nervous because it is a big deal."
To achieve so much in her sport, Liz had to give up many other activities and instead spend her time practicing. She practices for five hours a day, six days a week, equaling thirty hours of practice per week.
Liz has pursued gymnastics since her parents signed her up for lessons at age three and a half. Since then, she has especially perfected four gymnastic events.
Liz's best and favorite event is the floor exercise. The other events she competes in are the vault, uneven bars, and balance beam. All these exercises are included in Liz's practices and she usually spends forty-five minutes to an hour on each. The other hour is used for stretching.
People might think an hour is a long time to stretch, but it is a very important part of any exercise, and especially a sport that demands the flexibility and strength of gymnastics.
Stretching is also stressed at Liz's competitions, which either have the stretching in the beginning and then all the exercises, or stretching between each individual exercise.
If for some reason, Liz doesn't already seem famous enough, people's opinions are likely to change in the near future. Liz hopes to become the lead international gymnast and eventually to compete in the Olympics.

All these rookies have the potential to excel in the competitive atmosphere of the NFL.

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NFL 2000 draft review
By Matt G.,
Sports Editor

Let's discuss the 2000 NFL draft.
The first ten first round picks were: 1. Courtey Brown, 2. Lavar Arrington, 3. Chris Samuels, 4. Peter Warrick, 5. Jamal Lewis, 6. Corey Simon, 7. Thomas Jones, 8. Plaxico Burress, 9. Brian Urlacher and 10. Travis Taylor.
Here is some significant information about the new class of rookies. The first pick, Courtey Brown (DL, 6'4, 270 lbs, Penn State) was chosen by the Cleveland Browns.
Brown is a big man with long arms. He has potential but he also has trouble with double teams.
The second pick, Lavar Arrington (LB, 6'3, 250 lbs, Penn State) was selected by the Redskins. He should have been the #1 pick, because he has a sprinter's speed. A big-playmaker, he will jump, crawl, or sprint to get the opposition.
The Redskins also had the third pick, Chris Samuels (OL, 6'5, 325 lbs, Alabama). He is an outstanding and intimidating blocker.
The fourth pick, Peter Warrick, (WR, 5'10, 195 lbs., Florida), went to the Bengals. Warrick is the best wide receiver in the draft. He can catch and is very fast. His small size and speed enable him to maneuver around defenders to score.
Rounding out the top five, Jamal Lewis (RB, 5'11, 240 lbs., Tennessee) was choosen by the Ravens. He will be a great running back with power. He will be able break tackles.
Although Jamal is pretty big, he can still run the distance for a breakaway touchdowns.
Let's skip to the Bears' ninth pick, Brian Urlacher (LB, 6'3, 258 lbs., New Mexico). Urlacher is just who the Bears need because of his size and tackling ability, speed and quickness. He has all the skills to compete in the NFL.
All these rookies have the potential to excel in the competitive atmosphere of the NFL.

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