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China edges Japan for inaugural women's gymnastics team gold at YOG

2026-11-10 09:31 Xinhua

DAKAR, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- China won the first women's artistic gymnastics team gold medal at the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) on Monday, as Chen Ziyan, Xie Guying and Zhong Qi scored 107.798 points to edge Japan by 0.234 in Dakar.

France got bronze on 105.231, while Italy finished fourth.

Dakar 2026 marked the introduction of artistic gymnastics team finals to the Youth Olympic program. The eight finalists rotate through four apparatus, vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor. Each team names three gymnasts with no reserves.

Under the "3-2-2" format, only two gymnasts perform on each apparatus in the final, and both scores count toward the team total, which puts a premium on line-up choices and consistency, with no room for a single bad routine.

Japan led by 1.533 points after vault. China cut the deficit on uneven bars and moved ahead on balance beam, where Chen's 14.266 was the highest score on the apparatus. Xie posted 14.233 on uneven bars.

"We fought as a team, so the effort we put in together is what matters most," Xie said.

China's men's gymnastics team also struck gold on Monday. Li Lezheng, Yang Lanbin and Zhao Ruiyang combined 158.463 points to beat Japan by 2.233. Britain took bronze.

Attention will turn to the individual all-around finals on Tuesday, with Yang Lanbin and Li Lezheng in the lineup for China. Britain's Uzair Chowdhury, the top qualifier and the only to score above 80, looms as their main rival.

Xie Guying and Zhong Qi qualified first and second, ahead of Russia's Polina Dmitrieva and Japan's Yume Minamino, the 2025 junior world champion.

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