ILLINI MEN'S GYMNASTICS @ WINDY CITY INVITATIONAL
Date // Time	Saturday, January 15 // 7 p.m. CT
Location // Venue	Chicago, Ill. // Credit Union 1 Arena
Teams	Illinois, Michigan, Ohio State, Iowa, Minnesota, UIC, NIU
Live Stats	windycitygymnastics.com
Television	N/A
Series History	2020: 3rd, 2019: 1st, 2018: 1st
Team Information	Meet Notes // Season Stats // Record Book
Shop	Online Store
Social Media	@IlliniMGYM  | #Illini | @IlliniMGYM  | Facebook | YouTube

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Fighting Illini men's gymnastics team kicks off the 2022 season with a trip to Chicago, Ill. to participate in the 2022 Windy City Invitational. Hosted by Windy City Gymnastics, the 2022 competition will begin at 7 p.m. CT at Credit Union 1 Arena in Chicago.

The Illini will square off against Big Ten foes Michigan and Ohio State, and GymACT club teams UIC, Iowa, Minnesota, and Northern Illinois will also be competing at the event.

FIGHTING ILLINI MEN'S GYMNASTICS 2022 OUTLOOK

Illinois returns 17 letter winners from the 2021 squad that placed sixth in the nation and fourth in the B1G. 2021 NCAA Pommel Horse national champion Ian Skirkey returns looking to defend his title, while fellow All-American Connor McCool looks to improve upon a sixth-place finish on the floor at the 2021 NCAA Championships. The defending B1G vault champion Michael Fletcher also returns and looks to lead the team in the all-around along with seniors Hamish Carter and Clay Mason-Stephens.  

NEWCOMERS

Four newcomers join the Fighting Illini roster in 2022, including three freshmen and a graduate transfer. Graduate Student David Pochinka joins the team after transferring from Minnesota, and will contribute to Illinois' pommel horse, rings, parallel bar and high bar rotations. Freshmen Yan Inhaber-Courchesne (FX, SR, PB, VT), Maksim Farkhadau (PH), and Ashton Anaya (SR) will also be key additions to the Illini rotation this season.

MCCOOL AND SKIRKEY NAMED B1G GYMNASTS TO WATCH

Ahead of the 2022 men's gymnastics season, junior Connor McCool and senior Ian Skirkey were named Big Ten Gymnasts to Watch, and the Illini were picked to finish fourth in the B1G by the conference coaches.

Skirkey enters the 2022 season as the reigning NCAA National Champion on the pommel horse after a stellar 2021 season that included an all-American honor and second team all-B1G honors following his runner-up performance at the 2021 B1G Championships.

McCool enters the 2022 season following an all-American season on the Floor Exercise and a runner-up performance on the floor at the 2021 B1G Championships, earning him second team all-B1G honors.

2021 NOTES IN REVIEW

-The Illini finished with a 4-3 record in the regular season.

-Illinois placed fourth at the 2021 B1G Championships held in Lincoln, Neb.

-Illinois advanced to the championship session of the NCAA Championships for the 12th time in 13 seasons under head coach Justin Spring.

-Junior Michael Fletcher claimed First Team All-B1G honors and the 2021 B1G Vault title with his 14.600 vault routine.

-Sophomore Connor McCool claimed Second-Team All-B1G honors with his runner-up performance at B1G Championships and also earned NCAA Floor Exercise All-American honors with his sixth-place finish.

-Junior Ian Skirkey claimed the 2021 NCAA Pommel Horse National Championship, becoming the first Illini to win a national title on pommel horse since Brandon Ngai in 2016.

-Skirkey also claimed Second Team All-B1G honors for his runner-up performance on pommel horse, and was named an NCAA Pommel Horse All-American with his gold medal performance.

-Junior Hamish Carter set a new Illini record with his 83.550 all-around performance vs Michigan and Nebraska.

-Illinois recorded a season-high team score of 405.550 vs Michigan and Nebraska.

-The Illini competed in the first ever virtual meet in their season-opener vs NIU. This was also the first ever virtual competition in NCAA history.

FOLLOW THE #ILLINI

Follow @IlliniMGYM on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for the latest photos and content from Illini Men's Gymnastics, and tune in to fightingillini.com for the latest news and information on the program.