ITHACA, N.Y. – Eight of the top gymnastics programs on the East Coast have joined together to form the Gymnastics East Conference, it was announced today. The GEC, an independent, gymnastics-only conference, will begin competition during the 2022 season, culminating in the first-ever conference championship meet on Saturday, March 19 in Providence, R.I.

The GEC will be composed of founding members Brown University, College of William & Mary, Cornell University, Southern Connecticut State University, University of Bridgeport, University of Pennsylvania, West Chester University and Yale University. Since the NCAA doesn't recognize division classification in gymnastics competition, the creation of a conference with regional Division I and Division II schools benefits all of the programs.

"Cornell Gymnastics is thrilled to be a part of the newest gymnastics-only conference in the NCAA, said Cornell head coach Melanie Hall. "The Gymnastics East Conference (GEC) will give us an opportunity to compete with seven other highly talented teams and strengthen the quality and depth of college gymnastics. All of these teams boast national level gymnasts who excel not only in the practice gym and on the competition floor, but in the classroom as well. We are anticipating a fantastic season and can't wait for the inaugural Gymnastics East Conference Championship in March 2022!"

The championship meet will be held over two sessions, with qualifying teams 5-8 in the afternoon and teams ranked 1-4 competing in the evening based on National Qualifying Scores (NQS). This differs from previous unwieldy conference championship meets that included all teams in one session and will incentivize finishing in the top half of the conference standings.

The conference also introduced a logo, designed by Piard Design. The crest includes eight multi-colored ribbons and stars at the bottom, signifying each of the eight conference schools.

Piard Design is a creative agency that provides visual solutions across multiple platforms. The founders, Bill and Erin Piard, attended the University of Bridgeport and Erin was a member of the UB gymnastics team from 2010-2014. Their mission is to provide their clients with outstanding design, at an affordable price, through an exceptional experience.