CHICAGO, Ill. – Fighting Illini men's gymnastics seniors Evan Manivong and Connor McCool qualified for the U.S. Championships following weekend action at the U.S. Core Hydration Classics at the NOW Arena.
McCool and Manivong will join the five other past, present and future Illini already pre qualified for the Championships: graduate student Michael Fletcher, former Illini Alex Diab and Ian Skirkey, and future Illini Vahe Petrosyan and Alex Tapanes.
To pre-qualify for the U.S. Championships, a gymnasts must be a junior or senior National Team member in the past two years, or score among the top-three all-around gymnasts at NCAA Championships, excluding athletes that are already on a National Team.
McCool competed on both vault and floor – scoring 13.800 on vault and a monster 14.833 on floor to earn the highest score of the day and become the floor champion of the event.
"Connor continues to show that he is the best floor worker in the country," head coach Daniel Ribeiro said. "I am so impressed with his growth throughout his college career. Nobody deserves this more than him! He is a shining example of excellence in all facets, and seeing a man like that achieve what he deserves is the most fulfilling part of my job."
Not only did Manivong score a 14.550 on vault, he also competed on floor (13.950), pommel horse (13.000) and high bar (13.250).
"Evan had an absolute stand-out performance, hitting all four of his events," Ribiero said. "It is so exciting to watch an athlete earn their first appearance at the U.S. Championships! Evan attacked his gymnastics and left the competition with no regrets! This is just one more milestone that Evan has achieved in his incredible Illini career!"
Ten other past, present and future Illini also competed: Fletcher and Petrosyan, though already prequalified, former Illini Johnny Jacobson and Jordan Kovach, incoming freshman Brandon Dang and current gymnasts Ethan Boder, Tate Costa, Ryan Vanichtheeranont, Amari Sewell, and Ashton Anaya.
Fletcher, competing in the all-around, notched an impressive vault score of 14.350 with a 73.350 all-around score.
Boder tallied notable scores in both still rings (13.250) and vault (13.402). Costa's highest score of the day was on high bar where he tallied a 13.350. Vanichtheeranont posted a 12.100 on high bar with Sewell scoring a 14.450 on floor. Anaya tallied a 13.400 on rings and Dang scored a 13.366 on pommel horse.
Past Illini Kovach's highest score was a solid 13.000 on vault, with Jacobson taking the same score on floor.
"It's been a long time since we had seven Illini represented at U.S. Championships," Ribeiro said. "I am equally proud of those guys that made it as I am of those that did not. Every single one of these guys gave us 100 percent in training and preparation, and that is all I can ever ask of them. This experience will serve as a huge building block for all of our guys who took on this challenge."
The 2023 U.S Gymnastics Championships will take place Aug. 24-27 in San Jose, Calif.
