2022 OOFOS U.S. Gymnastics Championships: Brody Malone leads men after Day 1 with youngsters knocking at the door

TAMPA, Fla. – Defending champion Brody Malone (Stanford) is in firm control of the senior men’s competition at the 2022 OOFOS U.S. Gymnastics Championships at Amalie Arena after Day 1 of competition.

Malone notched the highest all-around score by nearly four points with an 88.942, highlighted by a massive 15.716 on high bar – his signature event.

It was a slow build for Malone, who was trailing behind Stanford teammate Colt Walker and others until the fourth rotation, when he took control after smashing his high bar set. He followed with a 14.616 (2nd) on floor and 15.089 (3rd) on pommels to finish the night. He also earned a 15.171 on parallel bars in the third.

First-year senior Asher Hong (Cypress) put on a dominant display with his signature “get it done” quiet confidence on display, finishing second to start the week with an 85.480.

Hong started the competition off with an exceptional showing on vault, earning a 16.630 for his Ri Se Gwang vault and a 14.700 for his Kas 2.5. He followed up that performance by posting the top mark of the night on floor (14.729) and the third-best score on rings with a 14.816.

Rounding out the top 3 all-arounders after Day 1 is Donnell Whittenburg (Salto) with an 84.774.

Whittenburg, who turned 28 on Thursday, built momentum through the six rotations, starting with a solid 14.000 on parallel bars before a hiccup caused him to fall on his first pass on floor (12.772). That fall would mark the only major blemish of the meet for Whittenburg, who went on to dominate his best two events: rings (15.422 – 1st) and vault (16.380 – 2nd).

Whittenburg also competed an excellent Ri Se Gwang and followed it with a Kas 1.5.

Rounding out the top 5 were Olympians Shane Wiskus (84.423) and Yul Moldauer (84.276).

The specialists put on an exciting display Thursday evening, with Illinois’ Ian Skirkey edging reigning world champion Stephen Nedoroscik (Penn State) on pommel horse 15.743 to 15.693.

The only other athlete to post over a 15 on rings was Alex Diab (USOPTC), who earned a 15.245 with a small crowd in “Team Diab” t-shirts cheering him on in the stands.

Stanford was automatic on parallel bars, with Curran Phillips posting the top mark of the entire competition thus far, on any apparatus, with a 16.999. The Cardinal owned the top 4 positions, with Blake Sun (15.992), Walker (15.699), and Malone rounding out the group.

USA Gymnastics’ men’s program bonus system, which was introduced in early 2022, is once again in effect at this year’s national championships. The system awards athletes additional points for performing select high-difficulty elements. 

See the full scores from Day 1 of senior men’s competition at the 2022 OOFOS U.S. Gymnastics Championships here.

Senior men’s competition concludes Saturday evening at 7 p.m. ET with Day 2. Follow our live blog here.