US gymnast John Orozco out of Olympics after tearing ACL – USA TODAY

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Team USA Olympic gymnast John Orozco will miss the Rio Olympics after tearing his ACL.
USA TODAY Sports

John Orozco can’t catch a break.

The gymnast will miss the Rio Olympics after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus in his left knee for the second time in less than four years. Reigning Olympic bronze medalist Danell Leyva will replace Orozco on the Rio team, which begins competition Aug. 6.

The injury, which occurred on a dismount off of high bar, is just the latest hardship for the 23-year-old Orozco. His mother, Damaris, died unexpectedly in February 2015. Four months later, he tore his Achilles tendon for the second time in five years, an injury that kept him out of last year’s world championships.

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Though he wondered at the time if the torn Achilles was a sign he should move on from gymnastics, the three-time world medalist decided to keep going. He showed he could be a factor in Rio by winning three medals, including a bronze in the all-around, at the test event in April, and last month was named to his second Olympic team.

Orozco was expected to contribute on pommel horse, high bar and parallel bars, where he won a bronze medal at the 2013 world championships. That made Leyva, the reigning world silver medalist on high bar and 2011 world champion on parallel bars, the most logical replacement.

Pommel horse remains a problem, though Leyva has the potential for a comparable score to Orozco.

Leyva was considered to be a lock for Rio before the two-meet trials process began. He’s the most decorated U.S. man since Paul Hamm with five medals from the world championships, and he’s only the third American man to win an all-around medal at the Olympics.

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But a month before the national championships, the first of two qualifying meets, Leyva was bitten multiple times on his hands and legs when he tried to break up a fight between his dogs. Several of the wounds were deep, and they limited his training.

The rust showed at nationals, where he finished 16th and needed one of the at-large spots at trials. He fared better the first day of trials, finishing third. But a lackluster performance the second day left him off the original five-man team.

Follow columnist Nancy Armour on Twitter @nrarmour.

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