Tuesday, March 2, 1999
UCLA club team takes title
at international competition
GYMNASTICS: Program lacks funding but Bruins still challenge top
squads
By Steve Kim
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
The Peter Vidmar men’s gymnastics invitational had UCLA marked
all over it.
The four day event held at the John Wooden Center gathered UCLA
gymnasts together with NCAA, club and age group gymnasts from six
different countries.
Though UCLA no longer has a NCAA team, the club version trains
nationally ranked gymnasts and competed against Division I teams
like Brigham Young University, Stanford and Cal in the college
invitational. The Bruins came away as the winners in multiple
events.
BYU won the overall team title, but Bruin Jim Foody won the
all-around.
"Tonight’s meet was a little different because it was under the
college scoring system, as opposed to the international rules,"
Foody said. "So I was able to water down and take things out of
routines here and there. I had a good time."
Foody may have "watered down" his routines, but they were
difficult and executed well enough to earn him ample points.
Along with his all-around, Foody ended up taking the high bar
title and a third place finish on the pommel horse. Foody’s
Sukahara (double layout, full twisting vault) scored 9.9 to earn
him yet another individual title.
But lacking depth in members, the Bruin club enlisted former
trainees such as Olympian Chris Waller. Even though Waller had not
trained regularly for this meet, he managed to pull off a difficult
high bar routine as well as exhibition performances.
"We didn’t have that many guys, so some of the alumni came to
help out," coach Doug Macey said. "It was good, and all around it
was a fun team effort."
Another Bruin alumnus success story, Peter Vidmar, was present
to give validity to the invitational’s name. The 1984 Olympic gold
medalist and former Bruin student athlete said although he didn’t
have much to do with the event planning, he was nonetheless
thrilled to be passing out medals and encouraging young
gymnasts.
"It’s flattering," Vidmar said of the event that is named after
him. "I’ve got a lot of great memories going to school here, so
it’s nice they found a home for this meet here at UCLA.
"There’s no Division I men’s program here anymore," he
continued, "but it’s nice there can be at least some sort of good
quality men’s gymnastics event on campus, even if it’s only once a
year."
Bruin gymnasts won the team title in another day of competition
with international athletes. The quartet of Foody, Steve McCain,
Alex Chansky and Andy Miller outscored their counterparts from
Iceland, Finland, Australia, New Zealand and Mexico.
Falling on several of the six apparatus, Foody settled for third
in all-around this time. His teammate Chansky placed second while a
gymnast from Iceland placed first.
Chansky excelled in individual events as well. He placed first
in high bar and third in both vault and parallel bars. McCain then
won the floor exercise while Foody followed in second place.
If they hadn’t proved it before, they proved it here. The Peter
Vidmar invitational gave these Bruins another chance to show that
although the lack of Division I funding has put financial
constraint on the squad for several years, they can still be
competitive gymnasts and nationally ranked athletes.DERRICK
KUDO/Daily Bruin
Jim Foody won the individual all-around at the Peter Vidmar
Invitational held in the John Wooden Center this weekend.
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