Gymnastics Weekly News: Marcel Nguyen targets European Championships for career finale

Two-time Olympic gymnastics medallist Marcel Nguyen isn’t quite ready to hang up his grips just yet.

The 34-year-old, who finished second in the all-around and on the parallel bars at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, missed out on a trip to a fourth Games a year ago due to a torn ligament in his knee. Now, he has one last competition in mind: the European Championships in Munich, his hometown.

“I’ve been doing competitive sports for so many years now, and this will probably be my last big event. So, of course, I’m super motivated to give my all here,” he said in a YouTube video with Munich 2022. “It’s not just taking my leave from the apparatus, but also from competitive sport. It’s definitely something special.”

This year’s European Championships are a multi-sport event with women’s gymnastics scheduled for 11-14 August and men’s 18-21 August. Competition at the European Championships will determine the teams that qualify to this year’s World Championships in Liverpool.

All the better for Nguyen’s finale.

“I always like to prepare for big competitions like this one and I’m not done yet,” he said.

The [judging] robots are coming

Well, not quite.

But, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) announced this week that its Executive Committee approved the use of Fujitsu’s AI Judging Support System at the upcoming Worlds in Liverpool. The system, which is approved on seven events (men’s vault, pommel horse, still rings and horizontal bar; and women’s vault, uneven bars and balance beam), can be used during inquires and blocked scores, according to the release.

The system provides judges with more information for routine evaluation “with 3D laser sensors and/or video cameras providing angular information through on-screen multi-angle views.”

Hashimoto Daiki part of Forbes’ 30 Under 30 in Asia

Two-time Olympic gold medallist Hashimoto Daiki was selected as part of Forbes’ list of 30 Under 30 for Asia.

Just 20 years old, Hashimoto, who won all-around and horizontal bar gold medals at Tokyo 2020, is seen by many as the future of men’s gymnastics. He followed up his Olympic success by taking silver medals at the Worlds a few months later in the all-around and high bar finals.

He is joined by several other Olympic medallists on the list including fellow gold medallists An San (archery) and Kyle Chalmers (swimming).

From the vault…

This week, we take a look back at the U.S. men’s horizontal bar rotation from the 2008 Olympic Games men’s team final. The Americans used an explosive rotation to catapult its way to a bronze medal. Jonathan Horton and Justin Spring’s high-flying efforts earned scores of 15.700 and 15.675, respectively, while Joey Hagerty delivered a 15.550 score.