Willowbrook High School hung a state championship banner in its main gymnasium to honor Jae Newman, the Villa Park school's horizontal bar state champion.

The Willowbrook Athletics department announced the unveiling on Tuesday, Sept. 1, saying Newman's place in the rafters is now permanent.

Newman, a Willowbrook senior competing with the Addison Trail/Willowbrook boys gymnastics co-op, won the horizontal bar title at the Illinois High School Gymnastics Coaches Association (IHSGCA) State Meet this past spring. Boys gymnastics has operated outside the IHSA under the IHSGCA for three seasons, as the Journal & Topics reported.

The championship capped Newman's senior season. He broke the Willowbrook school record on floor exercise with a 9.6 and helped the co-op squad finish 6-1, according to a Willowbrook High School Instagram post on May 21 naming him the school's Anyway's Athlete of the Month for April 2026. He shared the honor with girls badminton player Maisie Thompson.

Willowbrook Principal Dan Krause, who was tagged in the banner announcement, had championed Newman's season publicly. "STATE CHAMP! Get out the vote for Jae Newman, Willowbrook gymnastics," Krause wrote on X on May 17, urging support for a My Suburban Life Athlete of the Week nomination.

Addison Trail High School also celebrated Newman's title. The school posted on Instagram on May 18 that both Addison Trail and Willowbrook held a special state send-off for the co-op gymnastics team before the meet. The post called Newman's horizontal bar championship a point of pride for DuPage High School District 88.

The banner now hangs in the Willowbrook main gym at 1250 S. Ardmore Ave. in Villa Park.