Uniform deductions and Italian side quests couldn’t keep Fred Richard from securing his first Winter Cup title.
With the U.S. men’s bonus system in play, Richard cruised to the all-around title (84.359) inside Louisville’s Kentucky International Convention Center on Saturday. It was a more than 4.5-point win over second-place finisher Yul Moldauer, who scored a 79.710 in his first major test since returning from suspension. Stanford junior David Shamah rounded out the top three with a 79.608.
Fred Richard has plenty of room (and time) to spare
The last time Richard was on the Winter Cup stage a year ago, it was a very different vibe.
On paper, he did relatively well; he finished second in the all-around and third on parallel bars and high bar. He was top six on four events. But the performance didn’t meet the expectations the Olympic and world medalist has set for himself. There were multiple falls over the course of the two day competition and, of course, he didn’t win.
Fast forward a year and it seems he has emerged from a rut.
Now, Winter Cup is a one-day meet, and Richard came to Kentucky at an early-season peak. He hit six-for-six and earned a great all-around mark even without bonus points. His non-bonus 83.650 would’ve been good for bronze at Worlds four months ago – a meet he didn’t compete at because he didn’t make the team.
He also won floor (14.355) and was third on pommel horse (13.952), rings (13.800), and high bar (13.850), and fourth on parallel bars (14.352). The only event he didn’t finish top four on was vault, where he wasn’t eligible because he only competed one (it was a clean Kas 1.5 for a 14.050).
All this despite the 21-year-old Michigan standout receiving a three-tenth deduction for his out-of-compliance uniform – his own design that he began wearing last year in an effort to expand the clothing options in men’s gymnastics.
Not to mention he just spent a week in Italy as a Team USA Creator for the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. He flew over last week, had a whirlwind trip taking in various events, learned some tricks of the figure skating trade, trained at a local gym, and flew back in time to secure his spot on national team once more.
So if we’re getting this version of Richard now, what else is in store for the rest of the year?
Richard’s most pressing priority is finishing out his senior season on a high note. He’ll look to defend his NCAA all-around title in April and has high hopes for the Wolverines to defend their team title as well. In fact, in his post-meet interview on the USA Gymnastics YouTube stream, he shared his predictions for the 2026 NCAA Men’s Gymnastics Championships:
- Michigan
- Stanford
- Oklahoma.
After lowering the curtain on a decorated collegiate career, Richard will shift his focus to the latter half of the elite season. His other prediction? Fred Richard – 2026 world all-around champion.
The return of Moldauer and Wiskus
Two Tokyo Olympians are back on the U.S. elite scene after taking 2025 off for very different reasons.
While Moldauer was forced to sit out the season due to a suspension for a whereabouts violation, Wiskus spent much of the year recovering from shoulder surgery. Both made it to Winter Cup after strong performances at qualifying meets to start the year.
Moldauer’s second-place performance was particularly impressive given that he only returned to training a little over three months ago. The 29-year-old, who already has two world bronze medals to his name, won the parallel bars title with a 14.955 and finished second on rings (14.055).
His biggest mistake came on floor, where he earned one of those world medals. On Saturday, Moldauer counted a fall on his opening pass, went out of bounds, and missed a requirement, doing a triple full instead of a double salto dismount. Still, if this is the level Moldauer is at now – three months into training after completely stepping away from gymnastics for a year – it’s safe to assume he can improve on that 79 all-around mark by quite a bit.
Wiskus didn’t fare as well, finishing 14th with a 75.400.
Three weeks ago, the 27-year-old competed at the EVO Elite Collegiate Open – his first meet since 2024 Olympic Trials – and earned an 80.550. On Saturday, Wiskus made multiple major errors. The worst came on high bar, where he fell twice. The EVO meet was proof Wiskus is on his way back. Just like Moldauer, it’ll take some time for all the pieces to fall into place.
No one is expecting either Moldauer or Wiskus to go out and win a gold medal tomorrow. Unfortunately for Wiskus, a bad day on the mat means no national team to start the year – and no international assignments to get in more competitive reps.
The ones to watch
📈 Stock up
- David Shamah (Stanford): U.S. Men’s High Performance Director Brett McClure seemed particularly impressed with Shamah when he led partway through the meet. The 2022 U.S. Jr. 17 all-around champion was third overall and finished second on parallel bars (14.808). In his third season with the Cardinal, it seems the former standout junior has found his stride once again.
- Parker Thackston (Ohio State): Thackston joins an already deep field of U.S. pommel horse workers after his event win with a 15.325. He’ll head to the Cairo World Cup in April.
- Danila Leykin (EVO): Even with nearly half a point of bonus, a 14.658 to win high bar is hard to ignore. Leykin had a breakout season in 2025 and seems primed to continue that success at the senior level. Even more interesting, it seems the 18-year-old is opting to stay at EVO instead of competing in the NCAA.
👀 Keep an eye on
- Riley Loos (Stanford): The 2025 Winter Cup all-around champion focused on four events after tearing his rotator cuff last spring. His 14.150 was good for third on floor.
- Preston Ngai (Illinois): A junior at Illinois, Ngai was in the mix for the podium through much of the meet, but a fall on parallel bars – on top of other mistakes in the routine – took the wind out of his sails.
- Crew Bold (Michigan): The ideal candidate for American Cup coming into Winter Cup, Bold delivered on high bar (14.263) but missed the mark on floor and parallel bars.
⚠️ Rising stars we hate to get invested in early (but still are)
- Kai Uemura (Stanford)
- Nathan Roman (Oklahoma)
- Maksim Kan (Salto)
Region 4, Jason Hao win Elite Team Cup
After nearly a decade of dominance from Region 3 and a brief stint from Region 1 from 2022-23, there’s a new team on top in the Elite Team Cup.
Region 4 took the title on Saturday afternoon by nearly 5 points, besting the 2024 and 2025 champion Region 3, 455.245-450.688.
Winning the Elite Team Cup all-around title was Jason Hao, who led Region 4 to its win. Hao won floor with a massive 14.511 and tallied a 77.491 overall.
Region 4 consisted of Hao, Zac Myers, Chane Cumbermack, Jovan Jimeno, Elijah Connor, Zaiden Kyte, Jakson Kurecki, and London Norris.
In addition to Hao’s win on floor, Kiran Chhetri (Region 1) won pommel horse (13.111), Ryan Mills (Region 3) won rings (12.893), Kyte won vault (14.581), Myers won parallel bars (14.011), and Connor won high bar (13.011).
National Team Named + International Assignments
2026 U.S. Men’s Senior National Team
Through August 2026
- Crew Bold
- Taylor Burkhart
- Brandon Dang
- Asher Hong
- Patrick Hoopes
- Joshua Karnes
- Danila Leykin
- Riley Loos
- Brody Malone
- Yul Moldauer
- Kameron Nelson
- Dante Reive
- Frederick Richard
- David Shamah
- Parker Thackston
- Donnell Whittenburg
2026 U.S. Men’s Senior Development Team
Through August 2026
- Sasha Bogonosiuk
- Jun Iwai
- Preston Ngai
- Nathan Roman
2026 U.S. Men’s Spring International Assignments
American Cup | March 7
- Asher Hong
- Danila Leykin
- Yul Moldauer
Antalya World Cup | March 12-15
- Brandon Dang
- Patty Hoopes
- Donnell Whittenburg
DTB Pokal | March 19-22
Senior Team
- Asher Hong
- Joshua Karnes
- Danila Leykin
- Yul Moldauer
- Kameron Nelson
Junior Team
- Andres Aranda
- Jason Hao
- Jakson Kurecki
- Bo McCrea
- Nixon Miles
- Non traveling alternate: Cooper Gunderson
Grizzly Classic | March 19-22
- Cooper Gunderson
- Hunter Egan
- Elijah Gutierrez
- Jovan Jimeno
- Peyton Boerner
Cairo World Cup | April 3-6
- Crew Bold
- Patty Hoopes
- Parker Thackston
Osijek World Cup | April 9-12
- Brandon Dang
- Kameron Nelson
- Donnell Whittenburg
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