BERKELEY – The wait is over; the 2018 men's gymnastics season is here.
 
California begins a new era on Saturday in its home opening meet which marks the commencement of alumnus JT Okada's reign as head coach.
 
The Cal Benefit Cup tri-meet features local rival Stanford and SC United club from SoCal, and is scheduled for a 7 p.m. (PT) start at the RSF Gymnasium.
 
Okada, a 2009 graduate, has been with the program for the past five seasons as an assistant coach and coached former Bear Olympian Ryan Patterson in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio for the South Africa team.
 
"The start of season is always an exciting time and with a young hungry team the excitement is only heightened," said Okada. "The team has worked diligently to prepare for competition and I look forward to them putting their efforts on display this year."
 
Even with a new leader and new Under Armour uniforms, Okada's Golden Bears are focused on the same goal that has made Cal an elite program more than 100 years running – execution. This season also marks the 20th anniversary of Cal's 1998 national championship,
 
"This is the underlying basis for our gymnastics at all time," said Okada. "We strive for perfect execution of some of the most unique and interesting skills in gymnastics and in that way we have tried to combine tradition with the increased level of difficulty of the sport."
 
Key returners for the Golden Bears include seniors Michael Rauchwerger and all-arounder Yordan Aleksandrov and junior all-arounder Aaron Mah. The trio advanced to individual event finals at the NCAA Championship, highlighted by Mah's 16th-place finish in the all-around competition.
 
Okada expects contributions from the freshman quartet that includes Shane Sadighi, Joe Dixon, Angel Haro and Ben Allins, all California natives.
 
While Cal defeated SC United in Los Angeles last season, the Bears have not outscored the Cardinal since 2012.
 
However, with a new year comes new opportunity and Okada's Bears expect to execute perfectly.