World Artistic Gymnastics Championships 2023 preview: Full schedule and how to watch live Paris 2024 qualifying action

Paris 2024

American Simone Biles enters the event a heavy favourite to add to her historic medal tally. Find out the key things you need to know about the Paris 2024 Qualifier event. Can Hashimoto Daiki repeat as men's all-around champion? 

8 minBy Scott Bregman
Simone Biles poses with her medals

(2019 Getty Images)

25-time World medallist Simone Biles returns to the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Antwerp, Belgium, for a sixth appearance at the global event seeking to add even more history to her career resume.

The last time Biles competed at the Worlds in 2019, she came away with five gold medals (team, all-around, vault, balance beam and floor exercise), a feat she could repeat in Belgium.

A gold medal for Team USA would be a seventh-straight win at the event. The squad already holds the record for most back-to-back wins, but it would be Biles fifth in the event. She is currently tied with Romania’s Simona Amanar and China’s Huang Xu, Yang Wei and Chen Yibing as the only gymnasts to win four World team titles.

In the all-around, Biles has won in all five of her previous attempts including her global debut 10 years ago, also in Antwerp. No woman has won five titles in the event, but Japan’s Uchimura Kohei owns six men’s all-around titles – the record.

Biles will be the favourite for several titles in the individual apparatus finals, including on the vault where she is a two-time champion and the floor exercise where she owns five titles. Having taken the beam title three times (2014-15, 2019), Biles will also surely contend for gold in Antwerp on the event.

Her three titles on beam and five on floor exercise are a record for women’s gymnastics at the World Championships, while a third title on vault would move her into a tie for most wins with China’s Cheng Fei.

Her 25 total medals at the World Championships are already a record, one medal anywhere will tie her with Vitaly Scherbo’s World and Olympic medal count (34). Biles owns seven Olympic medals: four golds, one silver and two bronze.

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2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships – Antwerp, Belgium – A battle for women's team bronze

Beyond the history Biles will be chasing, the women’s competition promises to be as exciting as ever.

In the team event, the U.S. enters as the heavy favourties for another title while Team GB will be expected to defend the silver medal they won a year ago.

The battle for bronze will be intense with Italy, Brazil, France, Japan, China and Canada, last year’s bronze medallists, likely battling it out.

2022 World all-around champion Rebeca Andrade of Brazil has yet to compete in the all-around since becoming her nation’s first champion in the event; however, she will be a contender for the all-around podium once again.

2022 silver medalist Shilese Jones of the United States and bronze medallist Jessica Gadirova of Great Britain are also expected to challenge for the podium. Other all-around contenders include France’s Melanie de Jesus dos Santos, who won two titles at the recent Paris World Challenge Cup, and Japan’s Miyata Shoko.

Biles is the odds-on favourite for gold in the vault and floor apparatus finals. The uneven bars final should be a thriller with Algeria’s Kaylia Nemour, China’s Qui Qiyuan and Andrade all capable of big scores on the event, not to mention 2022 silver medallist Jones. All four women have gone over 15.000 in competition in 2023, according to the Gymter.net.

On the balance beam, beyond Biles, keep an eye on 2021 World balance beam champion Ashikawa Uraua, Qui and Zhang Qingying of China.

2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships – Antwerp, Belgium – China, Japan highlight men’s field

In the men’s competition, the team title will likely be a battle between Japan and China.

Japan’s squad is highlighted by reigning World and Olympic all-around champion Hashimoto Daiki while China is splitting its best athletes between competition in Antwerp and a home Asian Games. That means that 2021 World all-around champion Zhang Boheng, last year’s runner-up, won’t see action in Belgium.

With Zhang not competing at the Worlds, Hashimoto will be the favourite to claim a second global title in the all-around. Other contenders include World University Games all-around silver medallist Shi Cong of China and Japan’s Chiba Kenta, who has third best all-around total of the season.

History-making Filipino Carlos Yulo could also make a push for the podium. Yulo is also likely to contend for several event medals, including on the floor exercise where he made history in 2019 as his nation’s first gold medallist at the global event.

2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships – Antwerp, Belgium – Paris 2024 Olympic quota spots on offer

The World Artistic Gymnastics Championships are the sport’s main qualifier for Paris 2024 with several opportunities for National Olympic Committees (NOC) to obtain quota spots to the Games.

Last year, the U.S., Great Britain, and Canada’s women’s team secured team quota spots, with China, Japan, and Great Britain securing the men’s quotas.

This year, nine men’s and women’s teams will obtain quota spots for their respective NOCs to make up the 12 teams each.One individual quota place will also be secured for the three highest-ranked NOCs that did not earn qualification in the team event.

Individual quota spots will be obtained by eight men’s and 14 women’s athletes based off the all-around qualification rankings.

Finally, the highest ranked individual on each apparatus (six for men, four for women) will secure quota for Paris.

2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships – Antwerp, Belgium – Complete schedule

Qualifying competition runs 30 September-2 October with the first medals awarded Tuesday 3 October. Below is the complete schedule for the event with all times local (CEST).

AA – All-Around Group
AS – Apparatus Specialist Group

Saturday, 30 September
Men's qualifying
10:00-11:50 Subdivision 1 – Turkiye, AA3, Great Britain, Kazakhstan, Brazil, AA8
12:15-14:05 Subdivision 2 – AS1, Israel, Japan, Ukraine, Belgium, AS2
16:00-17:50 Subdivision 3 – Australia, United States, AA6, AA5, Uzbekistan, Romania
18:15-20:05 Subdivision 4 – Spain, AA4, Netherlands, People's Republic of China, AA10, Germany

Sunday, 1 October
Men's qualifying
10:00-11:50 Subdivision 5 – Egypt, Canada, AA9, Colombia, Switzerland, AA7
12:15-14:05 Subdivision 6 – Italy, Republic of Korea, France, AA1, AA2, Hungary
Women's qualifying
16:00-17:20 Subdivision 1 – Italy, Netherlands, AS2, AS1
17:45-19:05 Subdivision 2 – Chinese Taipei, United States, AA4, AA7
19:30-20:50 Subdivision 3 – AA2, Great Britain, Republic of Korea, South Africa

Monday, 2 October
Women's qualifying
10:00-11:20 Subdivision 4 – AA1, Spain, Belgium, Romania
11:30-12:50 Subdivision 5 – Mexico, AA9, Sweden, AA3
13:00-14:20 Subdivision 6 – AA6, Australia, Brazil, AA12
16:15-17:35 Subdivision 7 – AA10, Austria, AA5, Canada
17:45-19:05 Subdivision 8 – Germany, Hungary, Finland, AA13
19:45-21:05 Subdivision 9 – Japan, Czechia, Argentina, AA8
21:15-22:35 Subdivision 10 – France, AA14, AA11, People's Republic of China

Tuesday, 3 October
19:30-22:45 Men's team final (Top 8 from qualification)

Wednesday, 4 October
19:30-22:05 Women's team final (Top 8 from qualification)

Thursday, 5 October
19:30-22:40 Men's individual all-around final (Top 24 from qualification, maximum two per country)

Friday, 6 October
19:30-22:00 Women's individual all-around final (Top 24 from qualification, maximum two per country)

Saturday, 7 October
14:00-18:00 Apparatus finals day 1 (Top 8 on each apparatus from qualification, maximum two per country)
Men's floor exercise, pommel horse, still rings; women's vault, uneven bars

Sunday, 8 October
14:00-18:00 Apparatus finals day 2 (Top 8 on each apparatus from qualification, maximum two per country)
Men's vault, parallel bars, horizontal bar; women's balance beam, floor exercise

2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships – Antwerp, Belgium – How to watch

The 2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships will be shown around the world on live television broadcasts and digital livestreams, with highlights and event replays also available.

Coverage of the Paris 2024 Qualifying event will be available in some regions on Olympic Channel via Olympics.com and the official Olympics app (territorial restrictions apply).

Broadcaster BBC holds the rights in the UK, while fans in the U.S. can watch on NBC and its Peacock streaming service.

Peacock will carry all of the finals live. The complete schedule is below with all times Eastern.

  • 1:30-4:30pm - Tuesday, 3 October - Men's team final
  • 1:30-4:00pm - Wednesday, 4 October - Women's team final
  • 1:30-4:35pm - Thursday, 5 October - Men's all-around final
  • 1:30-3:55pm - Friday, 6 October - Women's all-around final
  • 8am-12:30pm - Saturday, 7 October - Apparatus finals, day 1
  • 8am-12:35pm - Sunday, 8 October, Apparatus finals, day 2

NBC's networks will carry two tape-delayed broadcasts at the event at 2pm on Sunday, 8 October on CNBC and at noon Saturday, 14 October on NBC.

Globo will show the Championships in Brazil.

Fans in some territories can catch the action on the International Gymnastics Federation’s streaming hub All Gymnastics TV.

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