Being upside down is not unusual for gymnast Cameron Deer.

But doing a handstand on Monument Circle was a new experience for the recent Carmel graduate.

Thursday, Deer was one of the 1,072 participants in Downtown Indianapolis trying to set a world record for the most people doing a handstand at one time. The feat was a promotional tool for the Visa Championships, which will be Aug. 10-13 in Indianapolis.

"I can now add to my resume I broke a world record," the 18-year old said.

The attempt will be submitted to Guinness World Records.

Deer, who trains at Indy School of Gymnastics in Carmel, has a vested interest in getting the word out about the national championships. He is one of three area gymnasts who will compete.

Also among junior qualifiers is St. Simon the Apostle student Samantha Peszek, 13, of DeVeau's School of Gymnastics in Fishers.

Deer and Peszek were introduced to a cheering crowd at Thursday's event, along with Pittsboro resident Bridget Sloan, 13, who trains at Sharp's Gymnastics Academy in Indianapolis.

Last year's championships were in Nashville, Tenn., where Peszek earned a spot on the junior national team by placing eighth in the junior all-around. The McCordsville resident is happy this year's championships are in Indy.

"I'm really excited because my family and friends can watch me now," said Peszek, who has been adding difficulty to her routines.

"Last year was my first time, and that also was the first time I ever competed on podium. I really liked it, and it was really cool because everyone's looking at you. That was new."

Peszek automatically qualified for the Visa Championships in October, thanks to her score in international competition.

Peszek, as well as fellow junior international elite Sloan, makes trips to the Women's National Team Training Center in Texas.

It will be the first championships for Sloan, who has been training with Marvin Sharp since she was 4 and also qualified through competition.

"It's definitely a great opportunity, and there will only be maybe 25 juniors in the country out of the 62,000 kids involved in USA Gymnastics," Sharp said. "We're trying to play down some of the enormity of the whole situation, but I'm excited and she's excited."

While Peszek and Sloan had a relatively easy time qualifying, Deer had to sweat it out.

He did not place in the top 12 at the Junior Olympic National Championships, but he got another chance at a June qualifier at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.

All the training and hard work paid off for Deer, who has been with Indy Gymnastics since he was 4 and made the Junior Olympic National Team in 2001. He has since battled injury.

"To even qualify, there's so much that goes into it -- the amount of time going to two-a-day workouts," said Indy School of Gymnastics head Gene Watson, who is also Deer's stepfather. "I think it's a tremendous amount of commitment on his part to even do the sport."

Deer has been training 61/2 hours per day, five days a week since school got out. Although he might have been best known previously for his popular sideline performances at Carmel football games, his stock is about to rise. Area businesses have asked him to do autograph sessions before the competition.

"If I'm lucky enough to make it again next year, it will be boring," Deer said, comparing the championships being in Indianapolis vs. anywhere else. "This is blowing my mind already, and I haven't even experienced it."

The best gymnasts in the country will compete in the event, which helps determine which gymnasts earn spots on the junior and senior national teams. Last year's senior all-around winners, Carly Patterson and Paul Hamm, went on to win Olympic gold.

Competitions will be at Conseco Fieldhouse (artistic, the most widely followed) and the Indiana Convention Center (rhythmic and acrobatic).

Fans hoping to see Deer in action should attend the junior men's event and all-around finals starting at 1 p.m. Aug. 10, the lone junior men's competition.

Peszek and Sloan will compete at the first junior women's competition, which begins at 1 p.m. Aug. 11. The all-around and event finals are set for 1 p.m. Aug. 13.

"The top juniors, the top seniors -- they're all going to be there," Peszek said. "All their routines are going to be highly difficult. Everyone is going to have an awesome time if they go."