BATON ROUGE — LSU senior gymnasts April Burkholder, Terin Martinjak and Kelly Lea, along with head coach D-D Breaux, were honored Tuesday by the state legislature as they were presented with three resolutions in recognition of their outstanding accomplishments and contributions to the LSU gymnastics program over the past four seasons.
State senators Jay Dardenne and Sharon Broome presented the group with a resolution congratulating them on their individual accomplishments and superlative team leadership, while also acknowledging the innumerable contributions they have made to their team, LSU and the community.
In addition, Burkholder was presented with a second resolution commending an exceptional career that finds her leaving LSU as the most decorated gymnast in school history; accolades which include the 2006 NCAA beam title, 14 All-America honors, four All-SEC selections, two SEC Gymnast of the Year awards, two NCAA Central Region Gymnast of the Year honors and four school records.
In the House, representatives Carl Crane and Yvonne Dorsey presented Burkholder, Martinjak and Lea with a final resolution, again congratulating the group on their outstanding careers at LSU and thanking them not only for their hard work and leadership on the floor of competition, but also in the classroom and the community where they have helped pave the way for the program’s future.
“To be recognized by the people of our state that work so hard each and every day to make Louisiana such a wonderful place to be is truly an honor,” said Breaux. “Throughout their careers April, Terin and Kelly have exemplified what it means to be true student-athletes and for these people to take the time out of their busy day to recognize those contributions is a tremendous honor.”
In addition, Breaux, Burkholder, Martinjak and Lea were greeted by Governor Kathleen Blanco where she expressed her sincere appreciation for the group’s extraordinary efforts in athletics, academics and community service work.