Cardinal Conquest: Embracing the Rocky Mountain Challenge

STANFORD, Calif. – Ranked No. 1 Stanford men’s gymnastics embarks on an early-season challenge as they face several ranked competitors in the Rocky Mountain Open scheduled for Saturday at 6 p.m. PT.

With No. 11 Air Force host, the Cardinal will also be up against No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 5 Nebraska, and No. 15 Simpson. Supporters can watch the Rocky Mountain Open live via Air Force’s YouTube channel.

LAST COMPETITION » Stanford recorded the top team score in the country this season, capturing six individual event championships in a 318.450-303.950 triumph against No. 8 California on Monday evening. Fifth-year Colt Walker stood out with three event titles that night (AA, FX, VT), already exceeding his prior tally of two from last season. Taylor Burkhart also shared the all-around title, while Brandon Nguyen (HB, PB) and Asher Hong (SR) added to the event victories for the Cardinal.

EXPERIENCE RETURNING » As titleholders of the past five NCAA championships, Stanford returns nearly all members from last year’s championship squad, missing only two competitors. The returning Cardinal include nine gymnasts with a combined total of six individual national titles and 26 All-America accolades, spotlighting reigning individual national champions Asher Hong and Khoi Young, along with returning fifth-year seniors Jeremy Bischoff, Brandon Nguyen, and Colt Walker. The only departures from 2024 are former All-Americans Brandon Briones and J.R. Chou.

TOP CLASS JOINS THE FARM » Alongside a wealth of championship experience returning in 2025, Stanford is excited to welcome another exceptional incoming class to the team this year.

This group, rich in national-level and international experience, features newcomers like Xander Hong, Cooper Kim, Kiran Mandava, Wade Nelson, Marcus Pietarinen, and Kai Uemura.

“I am extremely enthusiastic about having this outstanding incoming class with us next season,” Glielmi expressed. “Several members of this class—Kai, Cooper, Xander, and Kiran—have been part of the USA Junior National Team, which is promising for their transition into the senior division. Marcus brings invaluable international experience having competed for Finland, and Wade’s improvement this year indicates he is in contention for a national team position.”

THE DYNASTY PERSISTS » The Cardinal became only the second team in NCAA history (with Nebraska) to win their fifth consecutive NCAA championship last season, finishing ahead in the fifth of six rotations with a score of 425.324 compared to runner-up Michigan’s 419.689 inside Ohio State’s Covelli Center. This marked Stanford’s peak team score since they began their national title streak in 2019.

Leading the Cardinal, Asher Hong amassed an impressive three individual championships – on vault (15.266), parallel bars (15.100), and rings (14.966) – while Khoi Young claimed the title for all-around with a total of 86.098 points.

By winning the all-around title, Young became the fifth distinct Stanford gymnast to claim an NCAA all-around title and the ninth overall win by a Cardinal. Previous all-around champions from Stanford include Steve Hug (1972-74), Jon Louis (1986), Akash Modi (2015, 2017), and Brody Malone (2019, 2021).

This was Stanford’s 10th NCAA men’s gymnastics championship in the school’s history, winning every national title since 2019 (with no NCAA championship held in 2020). The other championships occurred in 1992, 1993, 1995, 2009, and 2011.

ELITE EIGHT » Furthermore, Stanford secured an impressive total of 13 All-America accolades among eight individual gymnasts in 2024. Young led with four accolades across all-around, parallel bars, pommel horse, and vault. Hong was recognized as an All-American in all three of his championship events, while Colt Walker, Jeremy Bischoff, Mark Berlaga, Arun Chhetri, J.R. Chou, and Brandon Nguyen each received acknowledgment in one event.

Among the Cardinal’s honorees, Arun Chhetri was the sole athlete to become an All-American for the first time in his career. Overall, Stanford has now recognized 81 different individual All-Americans in its history, accumulating a total of 307 honors.

NISSEN-EMERY RECIPIENT » The prestigious Nissen-Emery award, the pinnacle of college gymnastics achievement, returned to The Farm in 2024 with Colt Walker earning Stanford’s seventh accolade this season.

Walker joins former award winners Brody Malone (2022), Akash Modi (2017), Eddie Penev (2013), Dan Gill (2004), Josh Stein (1995), and Steve Hug (1974) among the Cardinal winners, becoming the fifth honoree under head coach Thom Glielmi.

Walker has enjoyed a distinguished career at Stanford as a four-time NCAA championship team member and a three-time MPSF conference team champion. Individually, Walker achieved All-American status on parallel bars twice (2022, 2024) and earned All-MPSF honors on two occasions.

CONFERENCE DOMINANCE » Stanford claimed the MPSF conference championship for the third straight year in 2024, achieving a season-high score of 422.700 to defeat host Oklahoma, California, and Air Force. This marked the Cardinal’s ninth conference title in program history, with seven victories under the MPSF banner.

The competition was tightly contested between the nation’s leading two teams, as Stanford surged ahead with an impressive 72.100 vault score in the first rotation. Oklahoma regained the lead after four rotations through solid performances on still rings and vault, but the Cardinal showcased their best in the latter rounds with season-high scores on pommel horse (71.950) and still rings (70.750) to clinch the meet win.

Post-meet, Jeremy Bischoff, Arun Chhetri, Asher Hong, Luke McFarland, Colt Walker, and Khoi Young all received All-MPSF team selections. Asher Hong was honored as MPSF Gymnast of the Year, marking his second consecutive win of the award.

TWO CARDINALS RECEIVE OLYMPIC BRONZE » The United States celebrated a return to the Olympic medal podium in Paris this past summer, with Asher Hong and alumnus Brody Malone assisting Team USA in securing bronze—their first team medal since 2008.

Team USA finished with a score of 257.793 on Monday’s competition, trailing Japan (259.594) and China (259.062).

During the team final, Asher Hong consistently excelled, scoring in the 14s across all four of his events. After narrowly missing the top 8 in still rings and vault during the qualification round, Hong recorded scores of 14.533 and 14.833 in those events respectively, propelling the USA into medal contention. The Tomball, Texas native also tallied a 14.133 on floor exercise and concluded his Olympic run with a 14.400 on parallel bars.

Hong and Malone thus became only the 2nd and 3rd Olympic medalists in the program’s history, joining 1996 parallel bars silver medalist Jair Lynch.