By DAVID PRESZLER

Bryan Austad's goal of reaching the Junior Olympic Nationals was in serious peril.

During the handstand of his rings routine at the United States Gymnastics regionals last month, the 12-year-old gymnast lost his balance and swung free by one hand -- twisting his lower back.

"When he first did it, I thought we were through," says longtime coach Paul Robertshaw, who trains Austad at Medford's Oregon Sports Center.

The injury left Robertshaw with a difficult decision to make about Austad: let him continue and risk further injury or withdraw and risk not making nationals.

"It didn't even look like that much," Robertshaw says. "We tried to ice it and it just kind of tightened up on him more and more until he could hardly walk."

That settled it. Nationals or no nationals, Austad was finished for the day. It was not an easy thing for a boy who'd worked five days a week, four hours a day to accept.

"It was not a happy day," says Robertshaw.

"I was mad," Austad says. "I didn't want to finish that way."

As it turns out, he didn't.

Robertshaw petitioned for an injury waiver for Austad and three days later the request was granted.

Austad and fellow Oregon Sports Center gymnast Meghan Jones both make their first trips to the Junior Olympics Nationals this week. The boys competition is at the Kellogg Arena in Battle Creek, Mich., while the girls event is at the University of Washington in Seattle. Both competitions run Wednesday through Sunday.

"I'm getting more and more excited," says Austad, who has recovered from what proved to be a minor injury. He took three days off after the injury, then slowly began working back into full practices.

Austad, a Class 3 gymnast who hopes to advance to Class 1 in a few years, wasn't eligible for the nationals until this year. Before the regionals, he had won the all-around title at all but one of his roughly 10 meets this year.

"Last year, he was a regional champion," says Robertshaw. "This is a big step up. These kids at nationals are going to be good."

Gaining experience is Austad's primary goal, but Robertshaw still expects a solid finish.

"He'll be more than respectable," the coach says.

Austad says his goal is to finish in the top 20. If he can finish in the top 14, he'll make the junior national team and have a chance to train at the Olympic training facility in Colorado Springs, Colo.

"We are training kids like him to be international competitors," says Robertshaw.

Jones holds similar ambitions. The 14-year-old Phoenix High freshman qualified for nationals in her first season at Level 10 -- the highest level in girls gymnastics below the elite classification of Olympic competitors.

"I didn't really think I could do it this year," she says. "I don't know what it will be like. I'm treating it like any other meet."

Jones, who finished third in all-around and won the bars at regionals, hasn't set specific goals for the meet. Her longtime coach, Chris Blache, says the experience is the most important thing.