A disheartening disparity has reared its head in gymnastics…Despite ending a 16-year long drought with a bronze medal win at the Paris Olympics, male gymnasts are face-to-face with a potentially career-hindering development. At a time when gymnastics already faces a 79.6% drop from 59 Division-I men’s programs in 1981, to 12 in 2024, they will lack the thing they need most: Money.

If the latest reports are to be believed, Ohio State University is set to cut scholarships for the men’s gymnastics team. Keep in mind, the program will still be around—athletes will unfortunately have to forgo the financial backing. This comes months after the NCAA set up a new compensation model, where universities would be permitted but not required to set aside up to $21 million in revenue for athletes per year. The plan also involved lifting scholarship caps that translate to NCAA D1 schools being able to “offer scholarships to every athlete on their roster, eliminating previous sport-specific limits”. And this is exactly what is probably pushing universities to make difficult decisions regarding their programs—besides men’s gymnastics, other programs are also expected to face a cut, in favor of other sports.

As per NBC4’s Whitney Harding, “We knew this was a possibility. My sources have been telling me for a while that they feared this because changes are coming to how money in college sports is spent….The NCAA rules are changing to allow universities to pay some athletes to have the money to do that. Universities say they must be forced to make tough financial decisions impacting some of their programs. Now, we have reached out to Ohio State… This is something, that we have heard, could possibly happen.”

Perhaps what is also propelling the drastic change is the lack of interest in the male divisions. In 2023, only 12,000 men were registered with USA Gymnastics competitions, compared to 138,000 women, according to the Associated Press. And this is what University of Michigan gymnast Paris Olympics bronze medalist Fred Richard aimed to change. While he hasn’t reacted to the current development yet, the youngster had painted a grim surrounding the sport. “That’s how the NCAA and all schools look at each sport: Is it entertaining enough to bring in revenue and sustain a program?” he had said after his Olympic win after adding,“This is the sport I love and it looks like it’s dying on the college side. I’m hoping (our bronze medal) shows the potential of gymnastics in gaining eyeballs (on the sport)…”

“I don’t think it’s ever been a situation where that many people are watching men’s gymnastics … and left feeling like it was worth it…What we’re trying to do is show gymnastics is amazing and super fun and people can fall in love with it if we do it right, which will cause schools to take a chance and open up more gymnastics teams,” the 20-year-old had hoped.

Paris’ breakout gymnastics star Stephen Nedoroscik, on the other hand, couldn’t fathom something of this magnitude. “Ohio State removing athletic scholarships from Men’s Gymnastics. Yet again, another step backwards for MGYM. With the success of current and former NCAA gymnasts at the Olympics you’d think NCAA programs would be excited for the upcoming season, not stripping away opportunities,” he wrote on X.

It’s not the first time something like this is happening. In 2020, Philadelphia’s Temple University’s male gymnastics program was axed, with the funds being reallocated to the women’s team. The male team’s head coach had also lost his job. Ironically, Ohio State men’s and women’s gymnastics director of operations, Drew Moling had said back then: “Our athletic department is still supporting us as much as they can and we are very appreciative of that.”

While we are not yet aware of how many athletes will officially be affected by the potential ruling, Harding mentioned, “The number of scholarships that the men’s gymnastics teams have is kind of scattered amongst the entire team. So, it’s not saying if they have like, say, six scholarships, six athletes are affected […] It could affect the entire team. We don’t know how it’s divided up because that is how it has been working since the decline that we’ve mentioned around the country.”

It’s definitely a hard blow, shining a light on the challenges the sport faces and the urgent need for more backing, and it’s stirred up quite the buzz in the gymternet. Folks are feeling many mixed emotions as the news spread like wildfire, leaving many to wonder what this means for the future of male artistic gymnastics.

Gymternet feels mixed emotions

Just a few hours ago, r/Gymnastics hit up their subreddit to share the news. “I am so bummed to see this. And I can’t help but think that participation in MAG wouldn’t be down if this country put money into it,” wrote the Redditor while sharing the post. Soon enough, other flocked to the comments section to voice their displeasure.

One user flocked to the comments section to express their thoughts, saying, “Oof, yeah – issues with OSU MAG aside (since I’m guessing that’s not what triggered the cuts, although maybe I’m wrong), this is concerning. Just one cut after another limiting opportunities for athletes to pursue the sport and reducing our talent pool…” It’s pretty wild to think about how men’s gymnastics has been on the decline for decades.

Meanwhile, another user didn’t hold back and expressed support for the scholarship cuts, commenting, “They reaped what they sowed.”

The comments are rolling in, and its clear opinions are all over the place! Some folks are on board with the cuts, while others are not so keen. One user chimed in with a more neutral take, saying, “This is just the beginning of the final death spiral for NCAA MAG. I have a feeling other schools will follow suit.” It’s a sobering thought that hints at some tough times ahead for men’s gymnastics, as the conversation unfolds.