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DALLAS – It's gut-check time for Justin Spring.

Time for the 2008 Olympic bronze medalist to put a decision to leave competitive gymnastics to the ultimate emotional test. Time for the first-year Illinois head coach to make what's become an annual appearance at the Visa Championships, but this time to watch others vie for the gold medals he once earned.

"Coming to this meet definitely brings a lot of those (emotions) out," Spring said Tuesday, a day before the start of USA Gymnastics' annual national championship meet. "I've been competing at this event for 10 years now probably (in the junior or senior divisions). It's an event that I love. It's where all the greatest athletes in the country get together, and it's time to really show off and shine. ... It's just a huge, intense meet."

It's also a meet the three-time national champion and 2008 U.S. gold medalist in the parallel bars will view this time from the sideline. Once the action begins today at the American Airlines Center, there might not be a more conflicted observer.

"I'm not a part of it, and I want so much to compete in it," said Spring, a four-time NCAA champion during his much-decorated Illini career. "But then, in the same respect, I'm happy to not be training. I'm very happy with my placement as a coach."

Those coaching duties extend to this meet. Three of his Illini gymnasts – Paul Ruggeri, Daniel Ribeiro and Luke Stannard – are in the field.

"It's exciting to have my own guys (entered)," Spring said. "Now I get to watch them do what I did in the past."

If any of the trio can match Spring's past feats, the payoff could be far more than a medal. At the conclusion of the meet, USA Gymnastics will select its men's team for the 2009 World Championships, scheduled for Oct. 13-18 in London – site of the next Olympics in 2012.

It's in major meets like the Visa Championships, Spring says, that the makeup of the next U.S. Olympic team begins to take shape.

"The year after the Olympic year is huge," the five-time U.S. Senior National Team member said. "It's a time for these up-and-coming athletes to show themselves as the next possible Olympic team."

For two Illini – Ribeiro and Stannard – this week marks their Visa Championships baptism. As Spring knows from experience, the first time can be an eye-opener.

"It's the best of the best," said Spring, who placed fourth in the high bar in his Visa Championships debut in 2004. "The entire country is there watching some of the best in the world. I think I did well, but it was nerve-racking. It can be very scary."

Particularly from a perch atop an elevated stage – which is the competitive setting at this meet.

"It is very intimidating to come out here and compete because you are on a podium," Spring said. "You're raised up. It's competing like you've never competed before. It really makes you feel alone up there on the apparatus."

During Monday's practice session at the American Airlines Center, Spring sensed Ribeiro and Stannard were a bit on edge. Afterward, he offered this advice to the pair:

"You need to enjoy this moment and realize that if you don't put it all out there on the floor, you're going to be at the end of this meet and have regrets."

Although Spring will admit to some separation pangs since ending his competitive career, the 12-time All-American said he remains regret-free. The fact he concluded that career by helping the U.S. men's team finish third at the Beijing Games is one reason.

"I was fortunate enough to be on an Olympic team, let alone an Olympic-medaling team," Spring said.

Then, too, there was the "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" – as he calls it – to be a collegiate head coach in his sport. He now belongs to an exclusive club of 16 in the shrinking world of NCAA Division I men's gymnastics.

"I jumped on it immediately," said Spring, who for the three previous years combined his competitive career with duties as an Illini assistant coach. "It wasn't even a decision for me.

"This gives me the opportunity to stick with the sport for as long as I can. You can't do that as an athlete, but as a coach now I've got this career ahead of me and I can stay with the sport that I love and respect."

Illini connection
Three Illini gymnasts are entered in the senior men’s division of the Visa Championships — the national championship meet for USA Gymnastics — which begins today in Dallas. A look at the trio:

AUL RUGGERI
The junior-to-be is a three-time NCAA champion, with two titles in the high bar and another in the parallel bars. Ruggeri was the high-bar gold medalist at the 2009 Winter Cup Challenge, USA Gymnastics’ annual winter national meet in Las Vegas. He is entered in the all-around.
DANIEL RIBEIRO
The reigning NCAA champion in the pommel horse will make his Visa Championships debut, competing in his signature event as well as floor exercise and parallel bars. The junior-to-be was the runner-up in the pommel horse at the 2009 Winter Cup Challenge.
LUKE STANNARD
The senior-to-be qualified for his first Visa Championships by winning the pommel horse and placing third in floor exercise at the Men’s National Qualifier on July 11 in Colorado Springs, Colo. The Big Ten’s reigning pommel horse champion is entered in every event except still rings.

Note: Former Illini Wes Haagensen (2005-08), who currently trains at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, also is entered. Haagensen is expected to compete in the all-around.

On the tube
The TV/Webcast schedule for the Visa Championships:
Thursday: Senior women, Universal Sports/Webcast (live), 7 p.m.
Friday: Senior men, Universal Sports/Webcast (live), 7 p.m.
Saturday: Senior men, NBC (recap), 2 p.m.
Saturday: Senior women, NBC (live), 7 p.m.