The 2006 FIG (International Gymnastics Federation) World Cup
China leg kicked off at the Shanghai International Gymnastic Center
today with hundreds of athletes from 18 countries taking part in
competitions in six men's and four women's disciplines.
Among the foreign contingent are elite gymnasts such as Dutchman
Yuri van Gelder, rings gold medallist at the 2005 World
Championship and runner-up of the 2005 European Championship, and
Brandon O'Neill of Canada, who won a silver medal for the floor at
the world championships in 2005.
Olympics pommel horse champion Teng Haibin is spearheading a
young Chinese team's medal efforts together with 17-year-old Cheng
Fei, who had a new maneuver – a backward 180-degree flip with
forward 540-degree flip – named after her and pommel horse prodigy
Xiao Qin.
This is the first time world gymnastics competitions are being
held under the new no scoring limitation system announced by the
FIG. Players, who used to compete well under the 10-point- maximum
system now have to modify their competition styles to suit the new
system.
To better train new talents for the world championships in
October and the Asiad in Doha, Qatar, in December, the China team
offered the opportunity to younger athletes instead of the
favorites and gold medal chasers, according to Gao Jian, director
of China's Gymnastics Administration Center.
"10 points was the highest grade which meant that powerful
athletes were reluctant to show too much flair," an international
umpire said, adding that the new rule is beneficial to those who
are developing new and difficult stunts.
The FIG World Cup consists of six legs each year. In the four
stops held earlier this year in France's Lyon, Germany's Cottbus,
Belgium's Gent and Russia's Moscow, China collected a total of 8
golds, 3 silvers and 5 bronzes.
The Shanghai leg is the highest-level global competition that
China has held since the World Championships in Tianjin in
1999.
Schedules:
July 14? Qualification Rounds
July 15? Finals of women's vault, uneven bars; Men's rings,
floor and pommel horse
July 16? Finals of women's balance beam, floor; Men's vault,
uneven bars and horizontal bar.
(China.org.cn by Li Xiao, July 14, 2006)