Jan. 4, 2006

Current Cardinal and former Stanford greats face off this weekend at the annual Alumni Meet on Saturday, January 7 (6:00 pm, PT) in Burnham Pavilion. Many fans and gymnasts consider the alumni matchup one of the best meets of the year, showcasing the talents and developing skills of the 2006 Cardinal, as well as impressive alumni.

The 2006 Cardinal returns 12 letterwinners from last season, including junior Dylan Carney and sophomores Sho Nakamori, David Sender and Jason Shen, who all advanced to the NCAA individual qualifier last season. Sender advanced to the parallel bar final at the 2005 NCAA Championships and finished second in the all-around at the U.S. Nationals last summer.

Freshman Bryant Hadden will be making his first competitive appearance on The Farm this weekend. A Texas and Oklahoma State Champion, Hadden was also a U.S. National Championship qualifier in 2004.

The current Cardinal will face a talented and experienced alumni squad. Among those tentatively scheduled to compete Saturday are former Stanford gymnasts Rico Andrade ('02), Jason Blitz ('02), Marshall Erwin ('03), Scott Finklestein ('01), 2004 Nissen-Emery Award-winner Dan Gill ('04), Kelly Lang ('05), Matt McLean ('03), Paul O'Leary ('03) and Daniel Torres-Rangel ('05). Blitz currently performs for Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas.

Fans will get a glimpse at the 2006 Cardinal's most recent routines, including experimental and unique skills. The varsity squad will be judged by the new code of points introduced this year. Alumni will scored by a separate standard, with all routines starting at 10.0 and judged thereafter on execution, crowd appeal and personality.

Former Stanford gymnast and current stand-up comedian Justin Berkman ('02) will be announcing the 2006 Alumni Meet. Admission to the event is free of charge.