BERKELEY – California men's gymnastics opens its season on Saturday, Jan. 14 against the best of the best, welcoming rival and reigning National Champion Stanford to Haas Pavilion for the main event of the Cal Benefit Cup. The first rotation is set to begin at 7:00 p.m. PT.

The 2023 Bears return six NCAA Finals qualifiers from last year's squad: seniors Will Lavanakul and Yu-Chen Lee, juniors Collin Cunane and Noah Newfeld, and freshmen Tyler Shimizu and Landon Wu. Newfeld was a competitor at the 2022 Winter Cup and the USA Championships, the latter of which also featured Cal senior Noah Sano.

Now a team captain, Newfeld is ready to return to action. "I think there are some nerves for the meet this weekend," he admitted, "but all of us are excited to show everyone what we have been working on in the gym this preseason. Our mindset and the overall mental aspect of this sport are things that we have all been working on, and we're hoping that it will help us going into our first meet."

Cal's best meet of the 2022 season came against Air Force on Feb. 20, totaling 401.150 points and setting program Top-2 marks on pommel horse and parallel bars. This year, with five Bears set to make their collegiate debuts, the team feels that every single person on the roster has a big chance to contribute toward the goal of consistent success.

"It's going to take everyone," said head coach J.T. Okada. "I think we can be a really great team this year."
 
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