Feb. 9, 2009

BERKELEY - Senior Justin Franklin joined the California men's gymnastics team as a junior in 2008, and has quickly made himself an integral part of the Golden Bear lineup. He is an important member of the pommel horse team, competing on the event for most of the meets for the Bears. This year, he is looking to add vault and floor exercises. CalBears.com interviewed the Fairfield, Calif., native, who has a great interest in history and legal studies.

CalBears.com: If you could attend any historical event, what would it be?
Justin Franklin: "As of today, if I could choose to attend any one major event in my lifetime, I would without a doubt choose Barack Obama's inauguration. However, if I had been a little older at the time, I would attend the Million Man March led by Louis Farrakhan in Washington D.C., on Oct. 16, 1995."

CalBears.com: If you could play on another Cal sports team, which would it be?
JF: "I would join the track & field team. I would be a sprinter."

CalBears.com: What is your favorite event in gymnastics and why?
JF: "My favorite event is and has always been the floor exercise because my skills on it can extend beyond the four walls of the gym. Not only does it require strength, agility, and coordination, but it gives me a sense of where I am in relation to the world around me. To be able to produce so much power that I skyrocket myself 15 feet into the air using only the limitations of my body is a truly liberating experience."

CalBears.com: What are you majoring in and why did you choose that field of study?
JF: "I am majoring in legal studies. Initially, I sort of `fell in' to this major. Now I very much enjoy the major because the classes strike a good balance between legal history and sociopolitical pragmatism. It is exciting to understand both the fundamentals upon which our society and other societies were built and the laws we use to navigate and govern our lives."

CalBears.com: Who is the most entertaining teammate?
JF: "All of my teammates are entertaining, but freshman Daniel Culpepper cracks me up with his `Family Guy' impersonations."

CalBears.com: What is your favorite part about the Cal campus?
JF: "The amazing view of the bay at the Lawrence Hall of Science."

CalBears.com: What has been your favorite part about your senior year to this point?
JF: "Practicing with the team."

CalBears.com: In the last men's gymnastics Q&A, Kyle Bunthuwong wanted the next men's gymnastics student-athlete to answer, if there was a movie of your life, what would you call it and who would star?
JF: "It would be `Coloring Outside of the Lines' starring Jaleel White, aka Steve Urkel."

CalBears.com: What question would you ask the next men's gymnastics teammate who is interviewed?
JF: "What is your most memorable moment in the gym?"

For a complete listing of past Q&As with the California men's gymnastics team, click here or look on the sidebar on the main men's gymnastics page.