Preliminary Feedback on Olympic Test and Qualifying Events

LONDON (GBR), North Greenwich Arena FIG Office, January 18, 2012: Less than 200 days from the opening day of the 2012 Olympic Games in London, the President of the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), Prof. Bruno Grandi (ITA), reports on the Test Events that have just drawn to a close as the last and final opportunity to qualify.

He emphasises that the final selective heat is a first for the FIG. “I am pleased that our gymnasts now have a second chance at participation in the Games, an initiative that aims to bring greater justice to the sport. But as with all new concepts, we will need to revisit certain criteria, details, that some feel are still too complicated. Our experience in London will be a great help to us. From a purely sportive standpoint, I am content to say that the values were upheld,” declared the President.

In terms of logistics, the President applauds the London organisers for high-quality event management. “Gymnastics is one of the most closely followed sports in the Olympic Games. I am persuaded that London will provide our gymnasts, the media, the public and our technical staff with an optimal training environment, an efficient reception and impeccable working conditions.”

President Grandi confides that the Finals in Artistic and Trampoline enjoyed spectacular audience success from a media standpoint. “This is the first time that the FIG has independently produced the signal of a Final. We have chosen to embrace a modern philosophy by live broadcasting on our “Gymnastics” You Tube channel. We have integrated social networks into our global communication package, which has proven very successful. I am excited about the prospects. Our new strategy is going to have an impact on the development of all upcoming FIG international competitions. This is an area close to my heart, and one of the objectives behind my campaign for a new mandate at the FIG General Assembly in October,” concluded the President.

From left to right: André F. Gueisbuhler, FIG Secretary General; Paul Deighton, LOCOG Chief Executive Officer; FIG President Prof. Bruno Grandi and Lord Sebastian Coe, Chair of the LOCOG Board.
 

Visa International Gymnastics – London Prepares Series
London (GBR), January 10 – 18, 2012

Rhythmic Gymnastics Finals

LONDON (GBR), FIG Office, January 18, 2012: The ten best Rhythmic Gymnastics Individuals and all Groups in the qualifying rounds at the Visa International Gymnastics held over the past two days at London’s North Greenwich Arena advanced to the Finals on Wednesday.

With Olympic qualification completed after the preliminary rounds, gymnasts competed for medal honours today, bathing in a supportive atmosphere provided by a cheering crowd at Greenwich.

Individual All-around Final

Individuals performed on all apparatus in this Final, following the Olympic order with competitors working on Hoop in the first rotation, before turning to their routines on Ball, Clubs and Ribbon.

Top qualifier Daria Kondakova of Russia boasted the highest score of the day with a total of 28.600 points on Hoop. She impressed with an overall superb performance that won her the Gold (110.450). On her chances of adding an Olympic Gold medal to the Silver she won at the 2011 World Championships in Montpellier, Kondakova said: "Every sportsperson tries to do their best and I am going to work very hard for the next half year and hope to achieve it." On how she enjoyed the competition this week despite the problems she had in some of her routines, she commented: "I always get satisfaction from performing and I came here to perform well and test the arena. I know I have a lot of work to do before the Olympic competition."

Ukraine’s Ganna Rizatdinova upped her qualifying score to a total of 108.750, winning the Silver medal today. She was the high scorer on Clubs (27.350) with a spectacular routine and performing all elements with maximum amplitude. She said after her performance: "I feel better than yesterday. There were some changes to the routine but I wasn't worried as I was performing for the audience. I was performing on more of a spiritual level today – for my emotions and for the people, rather than worrying about technical matters." On qualifying for the London 2012 Olympic Games, she said: "I wasn't expecting to qualify so I'm super happy. I went through all the emotions on the podium, and when I stepped onto it I felt I was stepping towards my future."

Last performer of this competition, Anna Alyabayeva (KAZ), who was sitting in fourth position after three apparatus, made the difference with her amazing Ribbon routine. Her precise body movements earned her the highest execution score on this apparatus (9.100) and with a total of 27.300 and a decisive move upward through the ranks, Anna carried the Bronze. On competing in her first Olympic Games this year, Alyabyeva expressed how she feels: "I am very excited but I am also worried because all my programmes have to change and I have only six months to get it together." On how she has enjoyed the competition this week, she stated: "I have had a lot of emotion and stress. I was nervous because it is my first competition before the Olympic Games but I am very happy today."

Individual All-around results

Gold KONDAKOVA Daria RUS 110.450
Silver RIZATDINOVA Ganna UKR 108.750
Bronze ALYABYEVA Anna KAZ 108.075

4 RODRIGUEZ Carolina ESP 107.400
5 TRIKOMITI Chrystalleni CYP 106.550
6 PISCUPESCU Alexandra ROU 105.400
7 BEREZKO-MARGGRANDER Jana GER 105.150
8 FEBBO Federica ITA 101.650
9 RAKHMATOVA Djamila UZB 101.600
10 VASS Dora HUN 100.850

Group All-around

Spectators at the North Greenwich Arena witnessed spectacular performances by the Rhythmic Groups, who presented both their routines today.

On top of their game, the first qualifiers from Spain confirmed their position today, finishing almost three points ahead of their contenders to clinch the Gold with a 53.250 total. The Group wowed the crowd with high throws, very difficult exchanges and fantastic collaboration work.

Ukraine’s Group, who qualified in second place, faced difficulties today. They made a few mistakes in both routines and a ball that went out of bounds cost them precious points. They dropped down to sixth place.

Even though their overall score stayed below yesterday’s performance, Israel ran off with Silver today. Their routines were well coordinated and clean, displaying a variety of ways to pass the apparatus.

France bettered their qualifying score to tie with Greece and join them in Bronze medal winning third place with a total of 50.400.

Pleasing the excited home crowd, Great Britain’s Group looked very confident today and performed two sound routines that were awarded a 47.200 total.

Group All-around results

Gold ESP - Spain 53.250
Silver ISR - Israel 50.525
Bronze FRA - France 50.400
Bronze GRE - Greece 50.400

5 SUI - Switzerland 50.100
6 UKR - Ukraine 49.650
7 AZE - Azerbaijan 47.250
8 GBR - Great Britain 47.200

The Rhythmic Gymnastics Finals concluded the Visa International Gymnastics, which as part of the London Prepares series functioned as Test Event for the 2012 London Olympic Games as well as the final Olympic qualifier. The event was hosted from January 10 – 18 at the North Greenwich Arena, including competitions in all three Olympic Gymnastics disciplines.

The venue will stage this year’s Olympic Artistic Gymnastics events from July 27 to August 2 and August 5 - 7 with the Trampoline competitions taking place on August 3 – 4. The Rhythmic Gymnastics event will be held at Wembley Arena on August 9 - 12 at Games time.

Rhythmic Gymnastics 2012 Olympic qualifiers

LONDON (GBR), FIG Office, January 17, 2012: The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) confirmed the Rhythmic qualifiers for the 2012 London Olympic Games following the second and final qualification event on Tuesday.

Twenty-four places were available for Individuals and 12 for groups of six, with gymnasts having two opportunities to qualify their NOCs - at the 2011 World Championships in Montpellier (FRA) and the Visa International Gymnastics this month in London (GBR).

Places for five Individuals who have qualified in London, namely Anna Alyabyeva (KAZ, Ganna Rizatdinova (UKR), Carolina Rodriguez (ESP), Chrystalleni Trikomiti (CYP) and Jana Berezko-Marggrander (GER) are nominative.

One spot is reserved for the host country, Great Britain, and three places are set aside for continental balance and universality. These places will be nominated in due course by the FIG Executive Committee and the Tripartite Commission respectively.

In the Groups category, with a total of 12 available places, Italy, Russia, Bulgaria, Belarus, Japan, and Germany had secured Olympic berth at the 2011 World Championships, while Spain, Ukraine, Israel,and Greece qualified in London.

One spot is reserved for the host country, Great Britain, and one spot is reserved for continental balance and universality. These places will be nominated in due course by the FIG Executive Committee.

List of Rhythmic Gymnastics 2012 Olympic qualifiers
 

Visa International Gymnastics – London Prepares Series
London (GBR), January 10 – 18, 2012

Rhythmic Gymnastics Qualifications – day 1

LONDON (GBR), FIG Office, January 16, 2012: The Visa International Gymnastics continued on Monday with the first day of Qualifications for Rhythmic Gymnastics Individuals as well as Groups at London’s North Greenwich Arena. Although the discipline will be staged at Wembley Arena at Games time, the Test Event and 2nd qualifier was held at the same venue as the Artistic and Trampoline Gymnastics competitions last week.

Twenty-seven Individuals had secured participation rights at the 2011 World Championships in Montpellier (FRA) for this event, with World Champion Evgenia Kanaeva (RUS) and World Bronze medallist Aliya Garaeva (AZE) having already qualified but opting out. 2011 runner-up Daria Kondakova (RUS), however, followed the invitation to compete in an aim to test the London waters, adding prestige to the event.

Guaranteed a place in the Olympics as the host nation, Great Britain is represented at the Test Event by Francesca Jones.

In total, twenty-three Individual gymnasts representing as many countries compete in London for the five remaining Olympic spots to be determined at the end of the qualifying round on Tuesday, all of whom are eager to join the line-up of fifteen NOCs who have already secured their Olympic spots in Montpellier.

The first leg on Monday featured Individual gymnasts on Hoop and Ball, with Kondakova taking the overall lead after the two rotations. She impressed with two excellent routines, pulling off fabulous moves with great expressiveness and good use of the music.

Ukraine’s Ganna Rizatdinova was the high scorer on Ball with a beautiful routine performed to a slow atmospheric melody. The 18 year old gymnast wowed the crowd with her elegant body movements, difficult rotations and balance. She is currently in second place, followed by Anna Alyabyeva of Kazakhstan.

Alyabyeva gave a fantastic performance today, impressing with excellent apparatus handling, high throws and other risk elements. She commented on her performance: "I feel very happy. It went wonderful.” On how she felt going into the competition she said: "I felt scared because only five people qualify and that made me nervous. It made me feel like I was already at the Olympics."

Chrystalleni Trikomiti of Cyprus currently sits in fourth place with Spain’s Carolina Rodriguez on her heels. Rodriguez’ fans in the crowd cheered for her vocally, appreciating a performance that included risky elements on Hoop and beautiful rolling movements on Ball. Rodriguez stated on the competition: "It was an important day for me, not only because I am getting close to qualifying but also for the first time my parents, who are hearing impaired, attended such an important event in my gymnastics career. I have also been struggling with a foot injury but I said to myself at the beginning of the competition that I have to pull through because of all the sacrifices I've made. If I was go to the Olympics I will be absolutely thrilled because my last Olympics was eight years ago and I will probably retire after this Olympics."

Jana Berezko-Marggrander of Germany takes up the last qualifying position for now, but the gymnasts will have to prove their skill again tomorrow in rotations three and four on Clubs and Ribbon.

Individuals - Intermediate results after Hoop and Ball exercises

1 KONDAKOVA Daria RUS 56.075
2 RIZATDINOVA Ganna UKR 54.575
3 ALYABYEVA Anna KAZ 54.275
4 TRIKOMITI Chrystalleni CYP 53.700
5 RODRIGUEZ Carolina ESP 53.575
6 BEREZKO-MARGGRANDER Jana GER 52.100
7 PISCUPESCU Alexandra ROU 51.950
8 GURBANOVA Anna AZE 50.850
9 FEBBO Federica ITA 50.750
10 RAKHMATOVA Djamila UZB 50.700
11 VASS Dora HUN 50.500
12 POH SAN Wong MAS 49.900
13 FILIOU Varvara GRE 49.575
14 STOYANOVA Tsvetelina BUL 49.450
15 VEINBERG FILANOVSKY Victoria ISR 49.350
16 CZARNIECKA Anna POL 49.150
17 ZETLIN Julie USA 49.050
18 GIM Yun Hee KOR 48.900
19 YAMAGUCHI Runa JPN 48.200
20 VALDEZ Cynthia MEX 48.175
21 PENG Linyi CHN 47.825
22 RUPRECHT Nicol AUT 45.350
23 MOUSTAFAEVA Kseniya FRA 45.100
24 SEME Tjasa SLO 44.875
25 JONES Francesca GBR 43.025

In Groups, nine countries are eligible to participate at the Visa International Gymnastics. However, the 2011 World Champions of Italy, who are already qualified for the Games, decided not to attend.

Great Britain as the host country is allocated a spot at the 2012 London Games. To ensure the quality of any Group representing Great Britain is credible and provides a lasting legacy for the future, however, British Gymnastics (BG) and the British Olympic Association (BOA) agreed a clear selection criteria and performance standard which must be achieved at this event before a nomination would be made for inclusion into Team GB.

Groups from the Ukraine, Switzerland, France, Israel, Greece, Spain and Azerbaijan are in the running for the four Olympic spots up for grabs.

In the first heat on Monday, Groups performed on five Balls, with Spain taking the lead and the Ukraine and Israel following closely behind.

Adored by the crowd, the Spaniards, who were first up, excelled in difficulty and synchronization, while Ukraine impressed with spectacular throws and catches. Israel’s routine included a variety of musical nuances and the gymnasts seemed to really enjoy their dance moves. Greece sits in fourth place, the last qualifying position, with France on their heels.

Even though they finished last today, Great Britain's Group was very pleased with their performance and Group member Francesca FOX (GBR) stated on the group's performance:
"It was amazing, we all thoroughly enjoyed it." On whether they are feeling the pressure to reach the qualifying standard set for them to compete at the London 2012 Olympic Games, she said:
"We never even thought about it, we just concentrated on giving the best performance we could. If we make it, it will be the first Olympic Games for all of us. In fact, we will be the first British Rhythmic Gymnastics group ever to qualify for an Olympic Games."

The Groups will compete on three Ribbons and two Hoops tomorrow, with the sum score of both exercises counting for Olympic qualification.

Groups - Intermediate results after exercise on 5 Balls

1 ESP - Spain 26.900
2 UKR - Ukraine 26.850
3 ISR - Israel 26.300
4 GRE - Greece 25.850
5 FRA - France 24.750
6 SUI - Switzerland 24.300
7 AZE - Azerbaijan 23.500
8 GBR - Great Britain 23.100

Rhythmic Gymnastics Qualifications continue with the second and final heat on Tuesday at noon local time, followed by the Finals on Wednesday. The top ten Individual gymnasts and all Groups will proceed to the Finals.

Fans may subscribe to the Gymnastics YouTube channel in order not to miss any of the numerous high quality video clips that are posted during Qualifications and Finals.

Competition photos will be added to www.fig-photos.com as well as to the gallery on the FIG Facebook page regularly and timely updates can be followed via Twitter.

The web-based Commentator Information System (CIS) allows everyone, who cannot be at the competition, to follow the results live on the Internet. Find out how!

Opening Press Conference

LONDON (GBR), FIG Office, January 9, 2012: With the Women’s Artistic Gymnastics podium training already under way at the North Greenwich Arena, the international media received their welcome to the Visa International Gymnastics event on Monday at an opening press conference staged by LOCOG Chief Executive Paul Deighton (GBR) and FIG Vice President Slava Corn (CAN).

There are precisely 200 days to go before the Opening Ceremony of the London Olympics and Deighton duly emphasised London’s readiness for the Games. The Visa International Gymnastics is the 29th test event of the London Prepares series, the first of 2012 and the biggest one to date with some 300 participating gymnasts and an overall ticket availability of over 40,000.

Satisfied with the public’s interest, the LOCOG CEO reported that most of the ticketed sessions were sold out quickjly, with availability left for the afternoon sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday, when the British Men’s Team will be bidding to qualify.

Corn expressed her delight with the phenomenal media interest in the event as she, welcomed the press representatives back to the impressive London venue that successfully hosted the 2009 Artistic Worlds.

As Corn explained, the event provides an opportunity for LOCOG to test operations ahead of the Games this summer as well as for the gymnasts to get a feel of the venue, and also serves as an Olympic qualifier. For the first time, the gymnastics body is holding a second qualification event for the Olympic Games this year, with the first having been the 2011 World Championships in the three disciplines.

Another first in London will be the live broadcast of the Men’s and Women’s Artistic and Trampoline Gymnastics finals on the FIG YouTube channel. And while fans can look forward to more high-quality video clips on YouTube, live scoring will be available on the federation’s event website for the Artistic and Rhythmic Gymnastics competitions.

In terms of television transmission, the FIG TV crew will produce footage of the event that will be made available to rights-holding broadcasters.

Corn confirmed the registration of a total of 420 media representatives at this event, including 140 representatives of the written press, 101 photographers, and 38 broadcasting companies.

The federation’s Vice President gave credit to the participating delegations, which had to adjust their training schedules for the event as January is usually not a peak time for gymnasts. She confirmed that everything possible was done to ensure the gymnasts’ safety, with the apparatus tested and certified and medical assistance on standby in the arena. The athletes’ health is a high priority for the federation, which runs a successful Academy programme for coaches’ education.

Finally Corn thanked LOCOG Gymnastics Manager Matthew Greenwood and his whole team for their excellent work and cooperation in preparing the event.

The event starts with the qualifiers for the Men’s Artistic Gymnastics on Tuesday at 10:30 am, which will determine the teams and individuals qualifying for the remaining Olympic spots.

NEW PRESIDENT!
Lausanne (SUI) / FIG Office, January 8, 2012: On January 6, 2012, the Portuguese Gymnastics Federation elected Mr João Paulo Oliveira do Nascimento e da Rocha as its President. The election follows the resignation of Manuel Boa de Jesus last November.

The Portuguese Federation, which is extremely active on the international scene, is in a difficult economic situation domestically. This resulted in the cancellation, on December 13, of the renowned Portimao Rhythmic Gymnastics tournament, scheduled for April 2012 and which counts towards the World Cup.

The FIG wishes Portuguese gymnastics and its new President Joao Paulo Rocha a swift return to a more stable economy, and will be pleased to quickly restore their international events to its calendar.phs
 

Visa International Gymnastics – London Prepares Series
London (GBR), January 10 – 18, 2012

LONDON (GBR), FIG Office, January 7, 2012: The eagerly anticipated second Olympic qualifier for Gymnastics will get underway in a mere three days’ time in London’s North Greenwich Arena, starting with the Men’s and Women’s Artistic Gymnastics qualification competitions on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively.

The Visa International Gymnastics event is the last chance for gymnasts to qualify for the London 2012 Games, and as part of the London Prepares Series it enables LOCOG to test crucial aspects of its operations ahead of the Games.

Also known as The O2 and built as the Millennium Dome to house the Millennium Experience exhibition in 2000, the North Greenwich Arena (NGA) will be the backdrop for the test event competitions in all three disciplines. The venue that hosted the 41st Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in 2009 will have a maximum capacity of 16,500 for this event. At Games time, Rhythmic Gymnastics will be hosted at Wembley Arena.

For fans, the main focus in all disciplines will be on the qualification competitions, with participants aiming for an Olympic berth.

Artistic Gymnastics

The event will feature preliminary rounds in Men’s and Women’s Artistic Gymnastics on January 10 and 11 respectively to determine the final places at the 2012 Games, and Individual Apparatus Finals on January 12 and 13 to test the field of play, results, timing and scoring systems. The gymnasts will compete in Teams, or as part of a mixed group of Individuals. Both MAG and WAG will qualify four Teams, while a number of spots as needed to fill up the 98 places available at the Olympic Games will be awarded to male and female Individual gymnasts.

In Men’s, the Teams from Japan, USA, China, Germany, Russia, Korea, Romania and Ukraine have already qualified, leaving Belarus, Brazil, Canada, Spain, France, Great Britain, Italy and Puerto Rico to battle it out for the four remaining spots.

The Women’s Teams of USA, Russia, China, Romania, Japan, Australia, Germany and Great Britain secured their Olympic qualification at the 2011 Worlds in Tokyo (JPN), leaving it up to Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Spain, France, Italy, Korea and the Netherlands to fight for the remaining places.

Trampoline Gymnastics

The Trampoline competition will take place over one day on January 13, with five male and five female gymnasts qualifying their NOCs for the remaining places at the London 2012 Olympic Games during Qualifications. The best eight gymnasts proceed to the Finals at this event.
Eight men and eight women secured Olympic participation for their NOC at the 2011 Worlds in Birmingham (GBR).

Rhythmic Gymnastics

Individuals and Groups take part in separate competitions in Rhythmic Gymnastics. Individual gymnasts perform four routines – hoop, ball, clubs and ribbon, while the Groups perform two – one with five balls, and one with three ribbons and two hoops.

The test event will reward five Individuals (nominative) and four Groups (NOCs) with Olympic berths, joining the 15 Individuals and six Groups who qualified at the 2011 Worlds in Montpellier (FRA).

Qualifications will be held on January 16 and 17 with the Finals scheduled for the 18th. The best ten Individuals as well as all eight participating Groups will proceed to the Finals at this event.

The FIG microsite, including all important information related to the event was launched today at http://londontest2012.fig-gymnastics.com/

See the lists of participants here and get familiar with the general programme:

More than 40,000 tickets were available for the event overall, with seats still available for the Artistic Gymnastics afternoon sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday, January 10 and 11. Click here to purchase yours!

The international media will be welcomed by LOCOG Chief Executive Paul Deighton (GBR) and FIG Vice President Slava Corn (CAN) at an opening press conference at 3pm local time on Monday, January 9, the day that also marks 200 days to go to the Opening Ceremony of the London Olympic Games.

Second Olympic Qualification – OG London 2012 Test Event
London Prepares Series
London (GBR), January 10 – 18, 2012

Lausanne (SUI), FIG Office, January 5, 2012: The FIG Executive Committee has approved the list of Rhythmic and Trampoline Gymnastics athletes authorised to participate in the second qualifying event of the London Olympic Games, scheduled for January 11 – 13 and January 14 – 18 respectively in London’s North Greenwich Arena Dome.

Following the qualifying World Championships in 2011, a situation arose that required Executive Committee attention, particularly with regard to the criteria surrounding universality and host country participation.

Consequently, Rhythmic will line up 27 Individuals and 8 Groups, and Women’s Trampoline 17 athletes.

Note that 324 gymnasts will represent Gymnastics at the Olympic Games: 196 for Artistic, 96 for Rhythmic and 32 for Trampoline.

Consult the updated participants lists for Men’s and Women’s Artistic, Rhythmic and Trampoline Gymnastics.

Last test prior ...the tests!

The "Torneo Internacional Ciudad de Zaragoza de Conjuntos de Gimnastica Ritmica" was held on December 10, 2011. Teams from Spain, Russia, Ukraine, France, Greece, Great Britain, Israel and Switzerland participated in preparation for the London Test Event scheduled for January, in which the above-mentioned teams, with the exception of Russia, will compete for the remaining four Olympic slots.

Predictably, the Russian team won the tournament, with Spain (photo A. Santos) and France in second and third.

Parallel to the event, Saragossa also hosted two international meetings vital to the future of Rhythmic Gymnastics: the UEG RG Technical Committee meeting and a workshop on the new Code of Points 2013 – 2016.

The latter was directed by Maria Szyszkwoska, President of the FIG Technical Committee for Rhythmic Gymnastics; and the course was attended by more than 100 participants, each of whom had a chance to witness the importance of this event and the role Saragossa plays in Rhythmic Gymnastics.

RESULTS

Second Olympic Qualification – OG London 2012 Test Event
London Prepares Series
London (GBR), January 10 – 18, 2012

LAUSANNE (SUI), FIG Office, December 14, 2011: Gymnasts qualified their national federations for the London Test Event during the 2011 World Championships of their respective discipline. Now, at the close of nominative registrations, we know whom the federations have chosen to send to the second Olympic qualifier, scheduled for January 10 – 18, 2012, in the North Greenwich Arena of London (GBR).

Artistic Gymnastics

Men and Women Artistic gymnasts respectively obtained the right to compete in the Test Event as follows:
 

• eight Teams of five who ranked 9-16 in Competition I in Tokyo (JPN),
• sixteen Individual gymnasts from the NFs, who ranked 1–8 in the Team ranking from Competition I in Tokyo, with a maximum of two per NF,
• 41 other gymnasts including up to two gymnasts from NFs ranked 17–24 in the Team ranking from Competition I in Tokyo; up to one gymnast from a NF, in addition to those ranked 1–24 in the Team ranking from Competition I in Tokyo, to participate as per the Individual ranking from Competition I of the 2011 World Championships (All-Around results).

Furthermore, Krisztian Berki (HUN) as the only Individual Apparatus World Champion from Competition III in Tokyo, who is already qualified for the London Olympic Games, obtained an additional place in the Men’s competition.

Click here for the list of Artistic Gymnastics participants!

Trampoline Gymnastics

Sixteen men and sixteen women have participation rights for the London Test Event in Individual Trampoline Gymnastics according to the following criteria:
 

• A maximum of two men and two women per NF as per the Men’s and Women’s Individual rankings from the Qualifying Round in Birmingham (GBR), with the constraint that NFs who had one or two men and/or one or two women in the Finals in Birmingham may not participate at the Second Olympic Qualifier apart from the host country,
• The Individual Men’s and Women’s Gold, Silver and Bronze medallists from the Finals in Birmingham,

Click here for the list of TRA participants!

Rhythmic Gymnastics

The 2011 World Championships in Montpellier (FRA) qualified Individual gymnasts and Groups of six gymnasts to the Test Event according to the following criteria:

 Individuals

• The Individual Gold, Silver and Bronze medallists in the Individual ranking from Competition II (All-around results) in Montpellier,
• Gymnasts from NFs with gymnasts ranked 16–24 in the Individual ranking from Competition II (All-Around results) in Montpellier,
• And to meet the quota, the best-ranked Individual gymnasts in the Individual ranking from Competition I (All-around results) in Montpellier, with a maximum of one gymnast per NF and with the exception of NFs already qualified with two gymnasts in the Individual ranking from Competition II (All-around results) in Montpellier and one gymnast from the host country.

Groups

• Six Groups of six gymnasts from NFs ranked 7–12 in the Group ranking from the General Competition in Montpellier,
• The Group World Champion from the General Competition in Montpellier,
• One host country Group.

Click here for the list of RG participants!

The Olympic Test Event for Artistic Gymnastics will take place on January 10 – 13, Trampoline on January 13 and Rhythmic Gymnastics on January 16 – 18.

Click here for the detailed schedule and find out more about the London Prepares Series for Gymnastics.

How to follow the action?

The FIG will open a microsite for the event early January 2012 at http://londontest2012.fig-gymnastics.com. In addition to news coverage, the website will display live results during the Artistic and Rhythmic Gymnastics competitions and provide information on how to follow the Trampoline Gymnastics competitions via the web Commentator Information System (CIS).

Fans of the high quality video clips produced by the FIG TV crew can look forward to numerous clips that will be posted on the FIG YouTube Channel during the event as well as special features to be confirmed at a later date.

Footage will also be made available to right holding broadcasters for transmission on television.

Competition photos will be posted and made available for purchase at www.fig-photos.com shortly following the competitions, and fans can follow event updates on Facebook and Twitter.

FIG Academy Programme

LAUSANNE (SUI), FIG Office, December 13, 2011: The FIG Academies, a worldwide education programme for coaches in the federation’s six competitive disciplines that was launched in 2002, celebrated the 10th year of its existence in 2011.

With eighteen Academies held throughout the year in fourteen different countries and on all continents, the programme that has as its goal to provide gymnastically developing and fully developed countries with a common knowledge base for the growth of high performance gymnasts, now counts a total of 118 Academies overall. In October, overall participation reached 3,000 coaches, marking an important milestone for this education programme.

The FIG Academy Programme consists of three levels of coach education. Federations may enter at a level that reflects their specific gymnastic coaching education programmes at home. Thus, federations with no gymnastics coaching education or only occasional coaching clinics must begin at Level 1. Those with formal coaching education programmes may begin at Level 2. Those with formal university degree programmes specifically for gymnastic coaches may begin at Level 3. Level 3 candidates who meet special pre-requisites and achieve exceptional examination results will be awarded with an FIG Coaches’ Brevet.

Even though the FIG does not certify or license coaches, federation-oriented responsibility, the seven-day Academy courses conclude with a comprehensive theoretical and practical examination.

Overview of Academies and Levels held in 2011

This three-level FIG Academy Programme has a high performance orientation but is supplemented, in cooperation with the FIG Gymnastics for All Committee, with a cross-discipline Gymnastics Foundations course targeting federations that are in the preliminary stages of establishing organised gymnastics programmes in their countries.

Each year, the FIG allocates a significant sum to its associated continental unions for development projects, with a certain percentage of this contribution being used for the organisation and participation of coaches at the Academy programmes.

Effective as of the year 2012, candidates for mandates within any FIG Technical Committee must have participated at a Level 3 Academy for their respective discipline. However, a Coaching Brevet is not mandatory.

Outlook for 2012

A total of twenty-five Academies are planned in 2012 with the following confirmed to date:

Overview of confirmed Academies and Levels planned for 2012

Hardy Fink, the FIG Director of Education and Academy Programmes, said:  “With the participation now of over 1,700 different coaches from 106 member federations at 118 Academies hosted by 44 countries, the FIG Academy Programme can now claim to be a world-wide programme. The coming year will bring even more Academies to make up for some of the ones that had to be postponed in 2011 because of the political conditions in the Arabian and North African countries. 

The Academy Programme for Men’s and Women’s Artistic Gymnastics has been supplemented this year with a comprehensive Age Group Development, Competition and Testing Programme that was introduced to 17 countries in 2011 to which will be added as many as 25 more during 2012.

The continuing support of the FIG President and Executive Committee has made this unique and extraordinary educational effort possible and has certainly already had a positive impact around the world. Thanks go also to the thirty-nine federations that have permitted the use of over 170 of their experts to teach at these many Academies and courses.”

Check out the detailed summary of completed and planned Academies here!

For more information, statistics, reviews and photo galleries of the FIG Academy Programme, visit the “Education” section on the FIG website.

FIG Rhythmic Gymnastics Academy Level 3
Tokyo (JPN), December 5 – 12, 2011

LAUSANNE (SUI), FIG Office, December 12, 2011: Only a few weeks after hosting the 43rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships, then an FIG World Cup and the Toyota Cup, the Japan Gymnastic Association (JGA) played host to a Level 3 Academy for Rhythmic Gymnastics in early December. The Academy was hosted in the amazing new facilities of the National Olympic Training Centre and Japanese Institute of Sport Sciences in Tokyo, which served as accommodation for all participants and venue for all theory and practical lectures.

This Academy was open to those coaches who had completed Level 2 in recent years and to counties with finalists at the most recent World Championships. The usual maximum permitted number of twenty at an Academy was exceeded with twenty-two coaches participating from six countries – Belarus, Germany, Japan, Malaysia and New Zealand.

Six experts taught the theory and practical lectures for this Academy. Among the lecturers were the members of the Academy Working Group for Rhythmic Gymnastics and a variety of other specialists. The course leader was Hardy Fink, the Director of FIG Education & Academy Programmes who also taught in the area of biomechanics and physical preparation. The majority of technical lectures were shared between Natalia Gorbulina of Russia and Nadya Alexandrova of Great Britain. Dr. Nota Klentrou, also a working group member lectured on physiology, growth and nutrition. Two special lecturers were Dr. Nariyuki Hayashi who is a neurosurgeon and professor of neuro-science. He presented two psychology lectures on how an understanding of the brain can help lead to success in sport and in life. Finally, Lasse Nettum of Norway who is a specialist in both music and rhythmic gymnastics presented a series of theory and practical lectures on more effective use of music in coordination with movement and choreography.

The highest result overall in the combined theory and practical examination was achieved by Marina Nikolaeva of Russia. She achieved an outstanding mark of 95%. Tied for second place were Rika Yamamoto of Japan and Katja Kleinveldt of Germany.

Every Level 3 Academy provides participants an opportunity to earn an FIG Coaching Brevet if they meet specific coaching experience pre-requisites and high examination results of over 85% on the combined examinations. Four coaches met all of the requirements and were awarded the FIG Coaching Brevet. These were Rika Yamamoto, Kurumi Oka and Yukari Murata of Japan and Marian Nikolaeva of Russia.

Participants were delighted to have Shihoko Sekita and Nataliya Kuzmina, both of the FIG Technical Committee for Rhythmic Gymnastics visit the course and attend several lectures. Madam Sekita, as Vice President of the Japanese Gymnastics Federation also opened the course on the first evening.

The Japanese Gymnastics Federation served as excellent hosts providing everything that could be needed to make the Academy a success – but especially the availability of an unprecedented twenty-two demonstrator gymnasts so that each participating coach could work with her own gymnast.

Our gratitude goes to President Hidenori Futagi and Executive Director Morinari Watanabe for hosting this Academy in such high style. And special thanks must go to Takashi Kobayashi who organised every aspect of the course and translated every lecture to Japanese in advance of the course and then did live translation during every theory and practical lecture.

But the Japanese Gymnastics Federation is not yet finished for 2011. The day following this Academy, on December 13-19, it will host a Level 3 Academy for Men’s and Women’s Artistic Gymnastics in the same location.

The Academy programme is also currently active with a Level 1 Academy for Men’s and Women’s Artistic Gymnastics running at this moment in Santiago, Chile.

2012 FIG World Cup events in Rhythmic Gymnastics

LAUSANNE (SUI), FIG Office, December 9, 2011: The 2012 FIG World Cup circuit in Rhythmic Gymnastics includes one category A event (Sofia) and six category B events. Apart from Corbeil-Essonnes (Individuals only), all events include both, Individual and Group competitions, with All-around competitions serving as qualifications for the finals by apparatus.

With stopovers in two continents, the competitions are slated for March 16 – 18 in Kiev (UKR), April 13 – 15 in Pesaro (ITA), April 28 – 29 in Penza (RUS), May 5 – 7 in Sofia (BUL), May 11 – 13 in Corbeil-Essonnes (FRA), May 18 – 20 in Tashkent (UZB) and July 13 – 15 in Minsk (BLR).

The world ranking points collected by the competitors at their best four events during the circuit will add up to a total, and the top scorers in each discipline will be crowned the winner of the overall series at the ultimate event in Minsk.

The new World Cup Rules 2012 for Rhythmic Gymnastics can be downloaded here!

Provisional registrations for the 2012 Rhythmic Gymnastics World Cup events are now open, with the following deadlines effective for FIG member federations to register their gymnasts via the online registration system:

FIG Foundation Council

LAUSANNE (SUI), FIG Office, December 7, 2011: In its September meeting in Montpellier (FRA), the FIG Foundation Council allocated grants for gymnastic and academic purposes to a total of twelve gymnasts for the year 2011.

The following members attended the meeting: Mr Paolo Parisi (ITA); FIG President, Prof. Bruno Grandi; Japan Gymnastics Association President, Hidenori Futagi; FIG Athletes Commission President, Jani Tanskanen; FIG Honorary Vice-President, Norbert Bueche; FIG Secretary General, André Gueisbuhler and FIG Deputy Secretary General, Nicolas Buompane.

The FIG Foundation Council granted twelve 5,000 CHF scholarships to gymnasts worldwide.
Note that only federations with a justifiable financial need and which have paid their dues are eligible for the scholarships. Criteria for consideration include exceptional talent and outstanding results; cases will be evaluated by recognised FIG technicians. Scholarships can be used to assist gymnasts in both their gymnastic and academic endeavours, and are designed to allow them to attend classes and train abroad, should adequate facilities be available.

The programme will continue on into 2012 and federations are invited to submit one candidate per Olympic discipline, a total of three candidates per federation.
 

A role model for Giraldo!

(by Ludovic Hubler, Head of Programme & Field Operations P&S)

The Peace & Sport Organization and the FIG launched on November 11 the programme “Gimnasia por la Paz” (Gymnastics for Peace) in Bogota (COL), a program using gymnastics to support women’s empowerment and social integration and prevent juvenile delinquency.

This  first FIG-Peace and Sport project “Gimnasia por la Paz” went very well.

Over 150 kids coming from the slums of Bogota were gathered inside the premises of the “Fundacion San Antonio”, one of our NGO partners taking part in the project (4 NGOs are overall taking part in the project).

New champion for Peace Jorge Hugo Giraldo Lopez was present as planned and played his “role-model” role in a magnificent way.

He first talked to the kids explaining his background growing up in the slums of Medellin and working hard to become one of the best Gymnast in the world. He also showed the 3 silver medals he won at the recent Panamerican games in Guadalajara (MEX), explaining how much work was necessary, starting from 8 years old ! Kids loved to touch the medals and getting autographs and photos with him. Jorge Hugo also made an exhibition showing how talented he is.

A very humble man with lots of qualities, a very good ambassador for FIG and Peace and Sport !

This project can now play the role of a “pilot project” for the National Federation who can use this experience to develop a national strategy putting Gymnastics at the service of peace cooperating with NGOs/Youth Centres situated in vulnerable zones.

As planned, some 3-4 minutes movies will be made soon for promotion that could help also to find future common partners for future common projects.

Other inaugurations will happen in other centers within the next few days in Cali and Guapi.

Peace and Sport is very happy of this new cooperation with FIG to use and promote Gymnastics as a tool for peace education and social integration of the most vulnerable. The experts have been appreciated by all involved stakeholders.