LATE SUMMER/EARLY FALL MINNESOTA MEN’S GYMNASTICS UPDATE

2026-2027 School Year Underway

With the new school year underway, we have lots to report on surrounding this historic program at the University of Minnesota.

As we enter our 124th season of competitive gymnastics at the University of Minnesota, we have a new group of guys that will help us continue the legacy that started way back in 1903.

Our freshman class will play a major role in scoring across the lineup this season. The regular-season schedule will give everyone an opportunity to compete as we prepare at Foundation Gymnastics for another strong season.

Meet the Freshmen

We’ll have more to say about this exciting group of newcomers, but for now let’s just meet them and find out where they’re from. ‘This group of freshmen could prove to be very critical to our success this year,’ head coach Mike Burns stated.  ‘I’m really excited to see how these five guys come around through the course of our Fall semester preparation phase.’

2026-2027 Freshman Class (Left to Right): Bode Ticknor, Leo Sagolla, Frederick Moeller, Jacob Kinney, and Eli Wright

Jacob Kinney from Plymouth, MN. He is a product of Mini-Hops Gymnastics where he was coached by former Gopher assistant coach Kostya Kolesnikov along with Tyler Green and Reuven Anderson.

Frederick Moeller from Mukilteo, WA. He is a product of Coastal Realm Gymnastics in Everett, WA where he was coached by Jon Chapman. Fredrick’s dad, Fred Moeller, was a member of the Gopher Gymnastics team in the early 90’s, transferring to Minnesota after the Wisconsin program was dropped in 1991.

Leo Sagolla is from San Francisco, CA and is a product of the Stanford Boys Gymnastics Club which is run out of the Stanford University men’s varsity gym. As you may remember, Stanford head coach Thom Glieilmi served as assistant coach at Minnesota for several years before being selected at Stanford in 2002. Leo joins three current team members from the SBG club in Palo Alto and was coached by Scott Burns.

Bode Ticknor is from Woodbury, MN and trained at Great Northern Gymnastics Club in St Paul Park, MN (which is run by Gopher alum Ron Hill). Bode was coached by his dad Frank Ticknor, a member of the University of Minnesota’s 1995 Big Ten Championships Team.

Eli Wright is from Burlingame, CA and like his teammate Leo, he also trained at the Standford Boy’s Gymnastics club on the campus of Stanford University. Eli is one of the nine Californians to come to Minnesota to keep this program on solid footing.

Let’s give a huge Gopher Gymnastics Welcome to this fine group of young men who made a great decision to call Minnesota their home away from home for the next few years!!

Tri-Captains Named for 2026-2027 Season

We are very pleased to announce our new team captains for the upcoming season. Seniors Ben Letvin and David Grossman will be joined by Junior Caleb Gurman as our tri-captains for this year. “This is an amazing group of individuals who will lead our team into another exciting season of University of Minnesota men’s gymnastics,” stated head coach Mike Burns. “These three have set themselves apart as leaders of men amongst an impressive group of people that make up this team.”

Congratulations to David, Ben, and Caleb!!

Annual Alumni Gathering a BIG Hit at Foundation Gymnastics

Foundation Gymnastics was the site of our annual Alumni Gathering back on Saturday, September 12. We had a fabulous turnout and FMMG Board Member Brian Meeker was the grill-master again, cooking up burgers and brats for all who attended. Thanks to everyone who showed up to see our new training gym and catch up with old friends.

A great turnout at Foundation Gymnastics!

Learn more about the gym at https://www.foundationgym.org/.

During the festivities, many of our alumni were heard discussing the possibility of resurrecting the annual ALUMNI MEET that we haven’t hosted since our program was dropped by the University in 2021. So, if there are any interested alumni out there who would like to dust off their grips and be part of a revived Alumni Meet, reach out to head coach Mike Burns at burns265@gmail.com. We will add any alumni interested in showing off to our Maroon and Gold Intrasquad that will be held at Foundation Gymnastics on Saturday, December 5th at 12:30 pm.

Senior Jack Gagamov Qualifies to Compete at the 2026 World Gymnastics Championships in Rotterdam

Representing his home country of the Czech Republic at the 2026 European Championships in Zagreb, Croatia, senior Jack Gagamov had a solid competition and was rewarded with an individual qualification to the 2026 World Championships to be held in Rotterdam, Netherlands from October 17 – 25.

‘What an amazing accomplishment for Jack to be able to represent his home country on the floor of the World Championships later this month,’ Minnesota head coach Mike Burns said. ‘This is just another feather in the cap of the University of Minnesota’s GymACT program. I can’t be prouder of Jack and all he’s accomplished in his time here at Minnesota.’

Jack left for a training camp in Czech Republic on Saturday, October 3rd, just a few hours after he and his teammates stormed the field at Huntington Bank Stadium when the Gopher Football team defeated Michigan to take back the Little Brown Jug!!

Best of luck to Jack in this epic moment is his gymnastics career.

The World Championships official site can be found here: https://rotterdam2026.com/

Ben Letvin and Kellen Ryan Represent Minnesota at the 2026 US National Championships in Phoenix, AZ

Phoenix, AZ was the site of the 2026 Xfinity US National Gymnastics Championships and Minnesota’s Ben Letvin and Kellen Ryan had the good fortune to make it to Phoenix after competing in the US National Qualifier at the end of June at the US Olympic and Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

Ben finished the two-day competition in 18th place in the All-Around while Kellen finished in 24th place in the All-Around. While neither qualified to the 2026 US National Team, they both had exemplary performances and helped firmly solidify that fact that GymACT student-athletes can compete with the top gymnastics in the country.

Congratulations to Ben & Kellen for continuing the trend that Minnesota’s David Grossman set last year with his qualification and success at the 2025 US National Championships in New Orleans.

Minnesota GymACT Schedule for 2026-2027 Season

The Minnesota GymACT Team will once again be challenged with some great competitions throughout the 2027 competitive season.

The full competition schedule can be viewed at here.


December 5th Maroon & Gold Intrasquad Teams have been picked in Historic October Draft Day

Team Captains Ben Letvin, David Grossman, and Caleb Gurman put together this year’s Draft Day on Friday, October 9th at Foundation Gymnastics. Senior captains Ben & David will serve as Gold and Maroon Team Captains, respectively.

Here are the Rosters for Team Gold and Team Maroon.

Team Gold:

  • Ben Letvin

  • Caleb Gurman

  • Kellen Ryan

  • Luke Pedersen

  • Christian Abran

  • Leo Feuer

  • Paul Acker

  • Justin Lancisi

  • Jacob Kinney

  • Jack Gagamov

  • Joey Pennell

  • Alex Winslow

Team Maroon:

  • David Grossman

  • Peter Davis-Ross

  • Bode Ticknor

  • Anthony Nicholas

  • Aaron Novick

  • KJ Richardson

  • Sean Francis

  • Micah Winder

  • Leo Sagolla

  • Vikram Isaac

  • Fred Moeller

  • Eli Wright

As mentioned above, any Alumni interested in putting together an Alumni Team to compete alongside the Maroon & Gold Teams, please reach out to Coach Mike Burns at burns265@gmail.com. If you are seriously considering this, please be sure your health insurance is up to date, and we’ll be sure to have you sign all the necessary waivers!!

FMMG Annual Fundraising Campaign About to be Launched

Fundraising is the lifeblood of the Minnesota Men’s Gymnastics program. Since we no longer have the luxury of a budget provided by the Athletic Department at the University of Minnesota, we are dependent on many revenue streams to keep our program alive and well.

Donations are a BIG part of how we cover the expenses of a 24-man team roster and as we move into our sixth season of being part of the vibrant GymACT League, we are looking to maintain the high standard that this program is known for.

That standard comes with a price tag and here’s a brief list of various expenses FMMG handles on an annual basis:

  • Facility cost – the team trains at Foundation Gymnastics which has sizeable costs associated with it: rent, CAM, property taxes, & utilities for a 14,000 sq ft facility

  • Equipment – as equipment ages, it needs to be replaced to assure safety

  • Grips – every athlete who competes on Still Rings and High Bar need grips. At an average price of $70 per pair, this is fairly robust line item

  • Chalk – we go through a LOT of chalk

  • Athletic Tape – we also go through a lot of tape & pre-wrap

  • Team Travel Costs – as you can see from our schedule, we’re traveling far and wide

To make a tax-deductible donation please visit our website’s DONATION PAGE at:  https://minnesotagymnastics.org/donate-to-the-fmmg

FMMG Will Also Be Launching Our Annual STICK THE DISMOUNT Fund Raiser Again This Season

Once again, we’ll be doing the Stick The Dismount Fund Raiser this coming season. Be on the lookout to join the fun as we have participants pledge dollar amounts to each stuck dismount the team achieves throughout the season.

Last year we had a total of 101 stuck dismounts. So, for someone who pledged $1.00 per Stick, they donated $101.00 to the cause. We raised just under $10,000 in 2026 and we’re hoping we can beat that in 2027. We had 16 individuals participate in this worthy cause and we’d love to see if we can double the number of participants in 2027. That’s one way to increase the pot.

Another way is to be sure the team works hard on sticking those dismounts on a regular basis, not only in meets, but in practice as well.

Once we have all the necessary documents ready, we’ll be reaching out to our loyal supporters for any and all financial assistance we can gather.