Games of the XXX Olympiad London

Lausanne (SUI), July 12, 2012: XXX Olympiad, With the deadline for National Olympic Committees to name or confirm their athletes for the London 2012 Olympic Games having passed on July 9, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) confirmed the lists of participating gymnasts today.

The FIG has a 324-athlete quota for the Olympic Games, which it divides into 2 x 98 for Men’s and Women’s Artistic Gymnastics, 96 for Rhythmic Gymnastics and 32 for Trampoline Gymnastics. A total of 57 different countries will be represented at the London 2012 Gymnastics events across all disciplines, with Women’s Artistic boasting the highest number of different countries (48), followed by Men’s Artistic (44), Rhythmic (24) and Trampoline Gymnastics (19). Germany is the only country represented in each Gymnastics discipline and category at these Games.

Artistic gymnasts Iordan Iovchev of Bulgaria (39) and Oksana Chusovitina of Germany (37) will participate at their sixth Olympic Games, a record in Gymnastics.

With 2008 Olympic Champions Yang Wei (CHN) and Nastia Liukin (USA) absent from London 2012, new Artistic Gymnastics Individual All-around Olympic Champions will be crowned this year. Record three-time World Champion and Beijing 2008 runner-up Kohei Uchimura (JPN) will get the chance to create history in this men’s event.

Counting three consecutive World titles and holding the record of having won six out of six possible Gold medals at the 2009 and 2011 World Championships, Evgenia Kanaeva (RUS), the most decorated Rhythmic gymnast in the history of the discipline, lines up to defend her Olympic title from Beijing 2008.

Trampolinists Karen Cockburn (31) of Canada and Anna Dogonadze (39) of Germany will make their fourth Olympic appearance in London, having participated at all Olympic Games since the discipline’s Olympic debut at Sydney 2000. Cockburn is the first and only competitor to take medals in all three Olympic events, winning Bronze in Sydney 2000, Silver in Athens 2004, and another Silver in Beijing 2008. Dogonadze won the 2004 Olympic title and placed 8th both in Sydney and Beijing. Interestingly, all Beijing Trampoline medallists, men and women, will be competing again in London.

Born on February 15, 1973, Dogonadze is the oldest female Gymnastics Olympian at London 2012, with Iovtchev, born nine days later, the oldest male gymnast. First year senior Anne Kuhm of France (born December 17, 1996) is the youngest female competitor (WAG) and 18-year-old Oleg Stepko of Ukraine (born March 15, 1994) is the youngest male gymnast (MAG).

Fifteen Singapore 2010 young Olympians are lining up for the London 2012 Gymnastics events, including Women’s Artistic All-around Champion Viktoria Komova (RUS) and Bronze medallist Carlotta Ferlito (ITA), as well as Men’s Artistic All-around runner-up Oleg Stepko (UKR) and Horizontal Bar Champion Sam Oldham (GBR).

While Canada’s Rhythmic Group includes two Singapore 2010 young Olympians (Katrina Cameron and Anjelika Reznik), All-around Champion Alexandra Merkulova (RUS) and Bronze medallist Jana Berezko-Marggrander (GER) line up in the Individual competition. Trampolinist Savannah Vinsant (USA) is the sole YOG representative in her discipline.

Seventeen out of 29 Olympic Solidarity scholarship holders in the FIG disciplines will be competing in London. The list includes Beijing 2008 Pommel Horse Silver medallist Filip Ude of Croatia, Trampoline Bronze medallist Ekaterina Khilko of Uzbekistan, fellow Beijing Olympians Kristyna Palesova of Czech Republic (WAG), Neta Rivkin of Israel (RG), Aliya Garayeva of Azerbaijan (RG), Alina Maksymenko of Ukraine (RG) and Luba Golovina of Georgia (TRA), as well as Singapore 2010 Youth Olympians Ana Sofia Gomez Porras of Guatemala (WAG) and Oleg Stepko of Ukraine (MAG).

London 2012 entry lists (as of July 12, 2012)

Men’s Artistic Gymnastics:

http://www.fig-docs.com/Media/London/LON%202012%20OG%20participants%20MAG%20for%20web%20new.pdf

Women’s Artistic Gymnastics:

http://www.fig-docs.com/Media/London/LON%202012%20OG%20participants%20WAG%20for%20web%20new.pdf

Rhythmic Gymnastics:

http://www.fig-docs.com/Media/London/LON%202012%20OG%20participants%20RG%20for%20web.pdf

Trampoline Gymnastics:

http://www.fig-docs.com/Media/London/LON%202012%20OG%20participants%20TRA%20for%20web.pdf. —– FIG