Hunter Dyke/Utah Athletics
SALT LAKE CITY – The University of Utah gymnastics team is set to embark on a trip to South Korea during Summer of 2023. While abroad, the team will train, participate in exhibitions against Korean teams, and host meet-and-greets with students aspiring to pursue an athletic career at the collegiate level in the United States.
The trip to South Korea marks the first international travel for a Utah Athletics program since the summer of 2017.
“Global experiences offer an unparalleled richness to student life, and we’re excited to offer that to this team,” said Red Rocks Head coach Tom Farden. “This will be an experience of a lifetime for our student-athletes, and we are extremely grateful for this opportunity.”
The University of Utah Asia Campus will play host to the gymnasts and staff during their stay in Korea.
“We are excited for our U athletes to experience life in Korea through the U Asia Campus,” said Randy McCrillis, executive director, and dean of students. “We are equally thrilled for our U students in Korea to get a taste of the energy that Utah Athletics, and the Red Rocks in particular, bring to campus life.”
The trip happens to be particularly meaningful to Farden, as he was born in Incheon and adopted to the U.S. as an infant. While there, Farden will also speak to an audience about the tools he has used to help him succeed in the sport and in life.
About the Red Rocks
The University of Utah gymnastics team has won 10 national championships, including nine NCAA championships, and holds the most All-American gymnast awards in the nation. They have qualified for every national championship since the team’s formation in 1976—the only team to do so. The team is known for drawing a large, energetic crowd, boasting the largest fan base of any collegiate women’s sport in the nation. Utah averaged an NCAA record 15,273 fans per meet during the 2020 season. The 2023 team includes three Olympic gymnasts, eight All-Americans, and two individual national champions.
About the U Asia Campus
The U Asia Campus is an expanded campus of the University of Utah in the United States. Opened in Songdo International City, Incheon in 2014, the campus offers general education courses and hosts nine majors, including Accounting, Communication, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Film and Media Arts, Games, Information Systems, Psychology, and Urban Ecology. Students who enroll at the U Asia Campus study in Incheon for three years, then travel to Utah for a year to finish their degree and receive the same diploma as the University of Utah in the United States. U students enrolled through the Salt Lake City campus can also have an impactful international experience at the U Asia Campus, take courses in English from U faculty, and pay in-state tuition for up to two semesters.