The Stanford Men's Gymnastics Team broke their three-meet losing streak to Cal in convincing fashion at the 2009 Pacific Coast Classic. Stanford reversed their curse on pommel with four gymnasts logging scores of 14.0 or higher, led by [...more]
Cal made it three-in-row over Stanford at the 2009 Gold Country Classic held on February 14. Once again, Cal's strength on pommels put the Bears on top, although the final team score was close (354.25 - 354.00). Cal had four gymnasts with pommel scores of 14.3 or better, led by Kyle Bunthuwong's 14.85. Bunthuwong also won the high bar competition with a 15.35. Cal's top all-rounders, the Bunthuwong brothers and Glen Ishino, [...more]
We would need a slapping if we didn't link to a great post by retired Michigan gymnast, Ward Black. It's all about the relative demise of U.S. excellence on pommel horse. Ward nailed it. He was very harsh on our guys, but he said what needed saying. He was not without some praise, though, especially that reserved for [...more]
All six members of the 2008 Men's Olympic Gymnastics Team successfully petitioned on to the 2009 U.S. Men's Senior National Team. Olympians Raj Bhavsar, Jonathan Horton, Joey Hagerty, Kevin Tan, Justin Spring and Sasha Artemev were joined by Tim McNeill and Kyle Bunthuwong, who were picked by the Men's Program Committee and the Men's National Team Coordinator. The remaining seven team members were chosen based on their performance at the 2009 Winter Cup. McNeill punched his ticket by scoring huge points on [...more]
Joey Hagerty backed up his dazzling first night's performance with an even better one in the finals of the Winter Cup Challenge. Hagerty posted an 89.75 to best the field. Perhaps the nation's top men's club gymnast, Danell Leyva, posted an 89.05 to finish solidly in second place. Stanford's Sho Nakamori, Guillermo Alvarez and Oklahoma's Chris Brooks rounded out the rest of the top five. The 17-year-old Leyva, from Universal, has been rewarded with a coveted spot on the U.S. Senior National Team. Seven gymnasts were named to the Senior National Team as a result of [...more]
The first day of competition is over at the 2009 Winter Cup Challenge in Las Vegas, NV. The top 42 gymnasts have qualified for the finals, which will be held on Saturday, February 7. Two club gymnasts placed in the top seven in the all-around competition. Danell Leyva garnered an 87.30 to take 3rd place for the evening, [...more]
The 2009 Stanford Open took place January 23-25. As usual, the folks on The Farm put on a good show. A special thanks to Meet Director Doni Thompson and Meet Co-Directors Tom Langenstein and Michael Diliberto for their great hospitality. The Stanford Open is one of the premier annual events for men's gymnastics. The highlight of the weekend was [...more]
The fifth-ranked Cal Bears defeated top-ranked Stanford in the 2009 season opener for both clubs. Cal freshman Glen Ishino provided an early indication why he was the nation’s top recruit by winning the all-around (86.200) in his collegiate debut. Check out the results here. This is the second season in a row that Cal beat […] [...more]
Ohio State freshman, Alexy Bilozertchev, has left the men’s gymnastics team for unspecified reasons. The announcement was made by Head Coach Miles Avery. Supposedly he will remain on scholarship to pursue his academic goals. What’s up with this? Bilozertchev, the son of former World Champion and Olympic gold medalist Dmitri Bilozertchev, was a prized recruit […] [...more]
StickItMedia Exclusive Interview Ten year-old David Finning knew what he was doing, yet he didn't consciously have a means to get his message across. It wasn't until one of his neighbors turned him in to his parents that he finally got the opportunity to officially become a gymnast. On that fateful day while his parents were at work, David somehow convinced his older brother and sister to help him position the family's backyard trampoline against the house. David then jumped down from the roof of his house onto the trampoline for added acrobatic effect, and ended up flying over a fence into the yard next door. Out of concern for David's safety, his neighbors busted him and called his mother at a local school where she worked. David's father, Scott Finning, decided it was time to do something about his son's precocious obsession with being airborne. Scott found a local gym near [...more]
