Chambana Sun

The University of Illinois men's gymnastics team has been recognized for academic achievement by the College Gymnastics Association (CGA), with 16 student-athletes earning Academic All-America honors for the 2024-25 academic year. Of these, 15 were named to the Academic All-America First Team, tying Illinois for the most first-team selections in the NCAA.

The Illini finished second in the CGA's Team Academic National Championship for 2025, after winning the title in each of the previous two seasons. The team's collective grade point average was 3.68, which was the highest among Big Ten programs but trailed only Stanford nationally.

Eligibility for these honors required a minimum GPA of 3.2 and participation in at least one NCAA-sanctioned competition.

Head coach Daniel Ribeiro commented on the accomplishment: "We are extremely proud of our student-athletes’ commitment to excellence both in the gym and in their academics. Their dedication continues to set a standard not just within our program, but across collegiate gymnastics."

The following athletes were recognized as CGA Academic All-America Scholar-Athletes:

First Team (GPA between 4.0 and 3.5): Hasan Aydogdu, Max Farkhadau, Will Hauke, Kyle Mayotte, Connor Micklos, Logan Myers, Preston Ngai, Matthew Vu Nguyen, Vahe Petrosyan, Ian Sandoval, Garrett Schooley, Amari Sewell, Dylan Shepard, Ryan Vanichtheeranont and Nathan Whitaker.

Second Team (GPA between 3.499 and 3.2): Sam Phillips.

Coach Ribeiro added: "Our academic support staff and coaches work hard to ensure our gymnasts have every opportunity to succeed academically while competing at a high level."

Illinois' continued presence among top academic teams highlights its ongoing emphasis on balancing athletic performance with scholastic success.