Dan Hayden is a retired American gymnast….who was a member of the USA’s 1985 and 1987 World Championships teams…..and was a US national champion while competing for Arizona State University….and was a collegiate national champion. In 1988, he was second at Olympic Trials during the first day of competition….but fell to eighth the second day….when he twice missed a Kovacs release on the high bar….thus causing him to miss a selection to the team and was named an alternate instead.
Dan Hayden’s twin brother, Dennis, was also an elite gymnast…..as the two own a gymnastics facility in Augusta, Georgia…..after both brothers were star junior athletes and moved away from home to train. Dan Hayden has a skill named after him on high bar….which is a double layout with a full twist over the bar called The Hayden Twist. He was inducted into the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2004.
