Mélanie De Jesus Dos Santos
At the beginning of this weekend, just a few nations that hadn’t but named their Olympic groups remained, together with Italy, the Netherlands, and France on the ladies’s facet together with Spain on the boys’s facet. However with the Italian nationwide championships, a pair of pleasant meets in Madrid and Haguenau, and the ultimate Dutch qualifier, we’re excited to announce that each Olympic spot has now been claimed!
Under, discover out extra about every thing that went down throughout each competitors that mattered. All groups are additionally included on our WAG and MAG trackers, which we’ve been holding up to date because the first NOCs certified at world championships in 2022!
FRANCE
The French WAG program hosted a pleasant meet in Haguenau on Saturday, the place the hometown hopefuls competed alongside Germany, Switzerland, and Belgium in a remaining bid to make the crew. Although Mélanie De Jesus Dos Santos and Coline Devillard – each typically thought-about locks for Paris – ended up withdrawing, France had a robust exhibiting with the remaining contenders, making the crew image clear.
Along with the 2 above, France named Marine Boyer (additionally just about a assure, however sealed the deal right here with one of the best scores on beam and flooring), Morgane Osyssek, and Ming van Eijken to the squad, which made sense primarily based on their performances all through the season and once more right here, however left a little bit of heartbreak as Lorette Charpy once more missed out after having a miss on bars at this competitors in a season that has been fairly tough total.
After Euros, I assumed van Eijken had confirmed herself worthy of a spot on the crew, however assumed that if Charpy might get again to full energy on bars, she would make it alongside De Jesus Dos Santos, Devillard, and Boyer, leaving the ultimate spot between van Eijken – who received the bronze on vault at her senior Euros debut in Might along with reaching the ground remaining – and Osyssek, a brilliant powerful alternative given Osyssek’s star-making efficiency at worlds final yr. However with Charpy solely scoring an 11.35 on bars on the pleasant meet following quite a lot of 12-range scores this season together with at nationals final month, her lack of readiness was sadly clear, particularly as van Eijken outscored her on this equipment along with once more proving herself as a prime vault and flooring athlete for this system.
The opposite athletes to symbolize France right here had been Djenna Laroui and Julia Forestier (who made a surprising comeback this season to place herself within the Olympic combine after greater than 4 years away from the game), who completed first and third within the all-around with scores of 51.750 and 51.600, respectively, and I might anticipate to see each on the record to function reserve athletes.
Different Paris Olympians to compete right here included Nina Derwael of Belgium, who received bars with a 14.65 and was the second-best on beam with a 13.7, Pauline Schäfer of Germany, who earned a pair of 12.85s on beam and flooring, and Maellyse Brassart of Belgium, who earned a 12.1 on bars, whereas Olympic alternate Karina Schönmaier of Germany tied for first all-around, placing up the highest rating on vault and the second-best rating on flooring.
ITALY
Alice D’Amato
Whereas two days of all-around competitors at Italy’s nationwide championships weren’t actually crucial to inform us what we in all probability already knew, it was nonetheless thrilling to see the crew of 2024 European champions – Angela Andreoli, Alice D’Amato, Manila Esposito, and Elisa Iorio – get the nod for Paris alongside Giorgia Villa, initially named to the 2020 crew however sidelined with an damage.
The best crew would’ve additionally included Asia D’Amato, who was injured at Euros this yr, however I feel Andreoli’s mixture of vault, beam, and flooring is a strong sufficient alternative, and the crew had one other sturdy contender in 2020 Olympian Martina Maggio, again from an damage of her personal however not fairly again up to the mark simply but. Regardless of defeating Andreoli by almost some extent when evaluating the two-day totals, Maggio in fifth place didn’t end within the prime three on any equipment, whereas Andreoli in sixth was the highest performer on flooring and had comparable sufficient scores on vault to make her the clear alternative this time round.
The all-around title went to D’Amato, who additionally received on bars and beam, whereas Esposito completed second, Iorio in third, and Villa in fourth, with all three ending within the prime three on at the very least one equipment apiece, rounding one another out properly when mixed with Andreoli’s flooring.
Exterior of the highest group, essentially the most promising alternative gave the impression to be Chiara Barzasi, who struggled via her first day of competitors however hit a 53.450 on day two to complete eighth total, whereas Irene Lanza, a veteran and member of the 2018 world championships crew, was seventh, profitable the title on vault because the strongest competitor to point out two vaults for every day common scores along with placing up 13+ scores on her different three apparatuses. Different vault medals went to Alessia Guicciardi with silver and Nunzia Dercenno with bronze, whereas junior Giulia Perotti received the bronze on beam with two glorious units.
Within the males’s subject, Lorenzo Casali, Mario Macchiati, and Yumin Abbadini topped the all-around podium to safe spots on the crew after the primary day of competitors, with flooring and vault standout Nicola Bartolini and excessive bar specialist Carlo Macchini, who additionally has a usable pommel horse set, added following equipment finals on day two.
It was positively a shock to see this system depart Marco Lodadio at house after rings has been such a staple for this crew, and I do really feel like Lodadio’s anticipated mid-14 on rings along with a high-level vault is extra of a “assure” than Macchini’s scores on both of his occasions. I used to be additionally barely shocked they went with Macchini over a fourth all-arounder who might add some further stability all through the crew competitors, as they did with Matteo Levantesi in 2023 and at Euros this yr, the place Lodadio was additionally current. However I do suppose the Italian males are nonetheless a bit behind within the hunt for a crew medal, and Macchini might be extra of a person menace on excessive bar than Lodadio is on rings, so I see and assist the imaginative and prescient.
Bartolini received the ground title right here, whereas Macchini received excessive bar and Lodadio received rings, every placing up a 14.65 to take the gold. Moreover, Edoardo de Rosa received the gold on pommel horse with a large 15.3, whereas Steven Matteo had the highest two-vault common with a 14.625, and Lay Giannini received parallel bars with a 14.7.
NETHERLANDS
Vera van Pol
On the remaining Dutch Olympic trial competitors held on Saturday, Lieke Wevers received the meet with a 53.132, forward of Vera van Pol with a 51.966 and Naomi Visser with a 51.366, confirming all three for the Olympic crew alongside bars standout Sanna Veerman and beam legend Sanne Wevers.
The outcomes weren’t that stunning in comparison with the standings at nationals, the place van Pol stood atop the rostrum with a 53.625 forward of Visser with a 53.517 and Wevers with a 51.709, whereas Veerman was fourth with a 51.625, led by her 14.533 on bars. On the trial meet, Visser had a fall on beam, however confirmed the strongest efficiency on bars with a 14.3, whereas van Pol had the strongest vault rating with a 13.833, S. Wevers topped beam with a 14.066, and L. Wevers was one of the best on flooring with a 13.233.
I hoped for an Elisabeth Geurts look on this yr’s crew, however an damage on flooring compelled her to withdraw from the preliminary competitors at nationals, and at trials, she was solely capable of compete on two apparatuses. Geurts scored a 13.133 on vault however then only a 10.3 on bars, the place she had a fall, leaving her on the skin for both a crew or reserve spot. Ground Slooff, sixth at nationals, and veteran Tisha Volleman, who was seventh, had been as an alternative confirmed as alternative athletes, with Volleman, a mainstay on the nationwide crew since her senior debut in 2015, sadly simply lacking the crew on her third Olympic try.
SPAIN
Joel Plata (middle) with Rayderley Zapata, Nicolau Mir, Adria Vera, and Thierno Diallo
On Saturday, the Spanish males’s crew hosted the Swiss males’s crew in a pleasant match in Madrid. Switzerland’s already-named Olympic crew bought a little bit of observe in, profitable the crew competitors with a 249.099 led by prime all-arounders Matteo Giubellini and Florian Langenegger.
However the huge information right here was the naming of Spain’s Olympic crew, which incorporates veterans Nestor Abad, Thierno Diallo, Nicolau Mir, Joel Plata, and Rayderley Zapata, all of whom competed on the 2020 Olympic Video games in Tokyo, with the previous 4 on the crew whereas Zapata appeared as a person athlete.
As with many veteran-heavy groups we’re seeing this yr, this wasn’t a lot of a shock, particularly because the all-around competitors right here noticed Plata (third with an 81.865) and Mir (fifth with a 78.233) because the strongest for this system, forward of the younger Daniel Carrion, a standout at Euros as a junior in 2022 who completed sixth right here with a 77.733, exhibiting his strongest work on parallel bars with a 13.633. I used to be additionally fellow 19-year-old Unai Baigorri as a possible specialist after exhibiting spectacular world cup outcomes on flooring and vault earlier this yr, however whereas each males confirmed tons of promise right here and appear to be they’ll be prime picks sooner or later, the veteran squad in the end made essentially the most sense.
Additionally competing right here was the thrilling younger Colombian athlete Angel Barajas, who certified by way of the world cups this yr because of his sensible performances on parallel bars. A standout on each that equipment and on excessive bar, he wasn’t at full energy right here competing on simply these two occasions, however he nonetheless managed the highest parallel bars rating within the subject with a 14.433.
Article by Lauren Hopkins
