CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois women's gymnastics head coach, Nadalie Walsh, announced the addition of Chris Bogantes to her staff on Monday afternoon. Bogantes most recently coached with Walsh at Utah State University.
"I am really thankful to be able to hire Chris Bogantes," said Walsh. "I think he has been a really great addition to my staffs at Ball State and Utah State. I am really excited to have him be a part of the Fighting Illini family and to partner with me to take Illinois back to the NCAA Championships."
Bogantes joins the Fighting Illini women's gymnastics program after serving one year as an assistant coach at Utah State under Walsh. In 2017, the Aggies advanced to an NCAA Regional for the fourth-consecutive season and earned a second place finish at the 2017 MRGC Championships.
"I am excited to have the opportunity to not only work at the University of Illinois, but to also continue working alongside Head Coach Nadalie Walsh," said Bogantes. "We have worked well together and developed a training plan that will continue to grow Illinois Women's Gymnastics and get us back to the NCAA Championships. The team and support staff have been very welcoming and made the transition to Illinois very easy."
Prior to his time at Utah State, Bogantes made coaching stops at Southeast Missouri State, Texas Women's University, Ball State and LSU. During the 2012-13 season, Bogantes was hired by Walsh as the first full-time gymnastics assistant coach in Ball State history. Walsh and Bogantes teamed up to guide the Cardinals to its highest team Regional Qualifying Score (RQS) in school history with a 193.820.
From 2008-10, Bogantes was a team manager and club team head coach at LSU, while also serving as a member of LSU's cheer squad from 2006-08.
Bogantes also brings experience in club gymnastics as he coached at Elite Gymnastics in Baton Rouge, Louisiana from 2006-08 and Legacy Elite Gymnastics in Carol Stream, Illinois from 2011-12.
Bogantes earned his bachelor's degree in history from LSU in 2009 and went on to earn a master's degree in kinesiology from Texas Women's University in 2014.
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