Miyata Shoko
In lieu of a complete recap for today – because it was a lot and it’s already 3 am for me! – I’m going to share a breakdown of all of the qualifiers to each final for the women’s events at worlds, talk about a few surprises or near-misses, and then can come back to you tomorrow with a more detailed breakdown of how each team and individual performed.
TEAM QUALIFICATION STANDINGS
1. United States 167.263
2. Great Britain 164.595
3. Brazil 163.563
4. Italy 162.798
5. Japan 162.564
6. China 162.064
7. France 161.428
8. Canada 159.661
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9. Netherlands 159.396
10. Australia 156.095
11. Belgium 156.063
12. Germany 155.664
13. South Korea 153.363
14. Hungary 152.296
15. Mexico 150.962
16. Finland 149.930
17. Spain 149.162
18. Sweden 147.529
19. Austria 147.164
20. Argentina 146.696
21. Taiwan 144.562
22. Egypt 144.097
23. Ukraine 142.729
All of my “definites” made it in, and Canada was one of my top bubble teams if not the top bubble team, so that also wasn’t a surprise, especially seeing how they performed today. My other bubble teams – Netherlands, Australia, Belgium, and South Korea – all finished in the top 13, but two teams I thought didn’t really have a chance at the top 12 for a variety of reasons really surprised me, as Germany narrowly made it in, while Japan put on a performance I couldn’t see coming from a million miles away.
I think the Japanese gymnasts even surprised themselves, as Miyata Shoko said their only hope was to make the final, and they didn’t really feel like that might happen at first, but once they got into the groove of competing and starting putting up hit after hit, the motivation in them to do well kept building more and more, and they became unstoppable, finishing on beam with scores that I truly did not think were possible, becoming the only country to get two gymnasts into that final. Just unbelievable, especially for a team where not one athlete had previous experience at the world level as seniors.
ALL-AROUND QUALIFICATION STANDINGS
1. Rebeca Andrade, Brazil, 57.332
2. Shilese Jones, United States, 55.766
3. Jade Carey, United States, 55.132
4. Martina Maggio, Italy, 54.800
5. Jessica Gadirova, Great Britain, 54.599
6. Ou Yushan, China, 54.466
7. Alice D’Amato, Italy, 54.366
8. Miyata Shoko, Japan, 54.166
9. Naomi Visser, Netherlands, 54.165
10. Flavia Saraiva, Brazil, 54.133
11. Ellie Black, Canada, 54.131
12. Jordan Chiles, United States, 53.998
13. Mélanie De Jesus Dos Santos, France, 53.865
14. Alice Kinsella, Great Britain, 53.798
15. Ondine Achampong, Great Britain, 53.598
16. Georgia Godwin, Australia, 52.866
17. Tang Xijing, China, 52.865
18. Carolann Heduit, France, 52.698
19. Yamada Chiharu, Japan, 52.465
20. Lisa Vaelen, Belgium, 52.432
21. Tisha Volleman, Netherlands, 52.333
22. Aline Friess, France, 52.265
23. Ana Barbosu, Romania, 52.233
24. Laura Casabuena, Spain, 52.032
25. Lee Yunseo, South Korea, 51.833
26. Manila Esposito, Italy, 51.798
27. Eythora Thorsdottir, Netherlands, 51.765
28. Romi Brown, Australia, 51.731
29. Maisa Kuusikko, Finland, 51.231
R1. Maellyse Brassart, Belgium, 50.699
R2. Karina Schönmaier, Germany, 50.633
R3. Natalia Escalera, Mexico, 50.365
R4. Anna-Lena König, Germany, 49.999
Gymnasts in italics were not eligible for the final due to two-per-country limitations.
No real surprises here in terms of anyone I thought who’d make it in missing out entirely, though I suppose Volleman getting in over Thorsdottir was a bit surprising, and of course, Chiles missing out after falling twice on beam at the end of an otherwise stellar day was surprising and sad.
I was happy to see Kuusikko sneak into the very last spot over some athletes from traditionally stronger programs, especially as she’s now the first gymnast from Finland to qualify into an all-around final, and it was also nice to see individual athletes getting very close to making it in, including Camille Rasmussen of Denmark in 35th and Lucija Hribar of Slovenia in 36th, both with scores of 49.899.
VAULT QUALIFICATION STANDINGS
1. Jade Carey, United States, 14.483
2. Jordan Chiles, United States, 14.316
3. Coline Devillard, France, 14.299
4. Yeo Seojeong, South Korea, 14.249
5. Jessica Gadirova, Great Britain, 14.200
6. Ellie Black, Canada, 13.749
7. Miyata Shoko, Japan, 13.666
8. Lisa Vaelen, Belgium, 13.499
R1. Lihie Raz, Israel, 13.416
R2. Aline Friess, France, 13.283
R3. Rebeca Andrade, Brazil, 13.266
Obviously the big shock here was Andrade’s hands slipping on the block for her Yurchenko double, causing her to essentially do a tuck timer out of it. The 15.066 for her Cheng and 11.466 for her second vault is such a ridiculous disparity, I don’t even know what to do but laugh, but it’s truly heartbreaking knowing that this could’ve been her easiest gold of the competition based on just how far ahead of the competition she was – to have her miss out on the final completely was a real bummer.
I would say everything else was expected, though I was really hoping Teja Belak would’ve gotten in. She was the individual competitor with the strongest shot at qualifying into the final if she (a) got full credit for her front handspring layout full, which is sometimes downgraded to a pike, and (b) hit it. Unfortunately, though she got credit, she landed it just a little too far back on her heels and sat it, and that combined with a hit Yurchenko 1½ put her down in 15th with a 13.116 average. Adding a point back for the fall would have gotten her to a 13.616, good enough for 8th place, so this one’s also a bit of a heartbreaker, as this would have been Belak’s first worlds vault final, and in a very tough field.
UNEVEN BARS QUALIFICATION STANDINGS
1. Luo Rui, China, 14.900
2. Nina Derwael, Belgium, 14.700
3. Rebeca Andrade, Brazil, 14.666
4. Wei Xiaoyuan, China, 14.600
5. Shilese Jones, United States, 14.566
6. Sanna Veerman, Netherlands, 14.533
7. Naomi Visser, Netherlands, 14.400
8. Elisabeth Seitz, Germany, 14.400
R1. Mélanie De Jesus Dos Santos, France, 14.400
R1. Alice D’Amato, Italy, 14.400
R3. Martina Maggio, Italy, 14.200
The Dutch gymnasts getting into the final together was the biggest shock to me. Veerman hit the best routine of her career with a personal best score that’s two tenths higher than anything else she’s done all season, while Visser also did some of her strongest work of the year here to upset several others.
Their inclusion was especially surprising in that I didn’t really account for either yet did account for two Italians in the top eight. D’Amato and Maggio got closest, and both are currently reserves, while Giorgia Villa wasn’t far behind, in 13th with a 14.166. Also missing out were De Jesus Dos Santos, who landed in one of the reserve spots, Tang Xijing in 11th, Alice Kinsella and Georgia-Mae Fenton in 15th and 16th…I can actually go on and on because so many gymnasts had superb routines here, but the final ended up being one of the most crowded of the competition and it meant a lot of great routines would sit outside of contention.
In terms of misses, one of the most notable was Fukasawa Kokoro, who wasn’t quite at her best to finish 25th with a 13.5 when she could have been capable of getting close to the final, and then Lee Yunseo of South Korea was down in 38th with a 13.2, with her handstands absolutely smashed to pieces by the judges, though I do think the final could have been tough for her regardless, and the same goes for Lisa Vaelen and Skye Blakely, both of whom had falls but likely wouldn’t have contended with hits (though both could have gotten close).
BALANCE BEAM QUALIFICATION STANDINGS
1. Ou Yushan, China, 13.900
2. Skye Blakely, United States, 13.733
3. Miyata Shoko, Japan, 13.700
4. Marine Boyer, France, 13.666
5. Watanabe Hazuki, Japan, 13.600
6. Zsofia Kovacs, Hungary, 13.533
7. Sakaguchi Ayaka, Japan, 13.466
8. Rebeca Andrade, Brazil, 13.400
9. Ellie Black, Canada, 13.266
R1. Shilese Jones, United States, 13.200
R2. Alice Kinsella, Great Britain, 13.066
R3. Ting Hua-Tien, Taiwan, 13.000
Off the bat, the surprises were Japan not only getting two into the final, but getting a third two-per-country’ed out of the final? I was shocked, to say the least, especially as I thought this was the event that would take Japan completely out of the running as a team. Good on them for doing their best work basically ever on an apparatus that is notoriously problematic, including for these particular gymnasts?!
I was also very surprised to see Kovacs both hit and make the final, given her struggles here earlier in the season and her abdominal strain injury, and while I wasn’t surprised to see Black make it, I was surprised to see that she got in with a comparatively low score – when she earned that score in her subdivision, I thought she’d be out for sure, but she hung on until the very end and I’m glad we’ll get to see her in another beam final at this level. Also, though she’s a reserve and not actually in the final, I was thrilled about Ting hitting and getting so close once again after finishing 10th in Doha a few years back!
China getting a gymnast into this final wasn’t a surprise, but I think that fact that it was Ou – and at the top of the field – was a little out there? Unfortunately falls from both Tang Xijing and Luo Rui, who I had pinned as potential medalists, held them back to 38th and 109th.
Just as surprising as who made it was who did not. In addition to Luo and Ting, we are missing Flavia Saraiva and the Italians here, as Saraiva missed her triple flight series and all of the Italians had falls with the exception of Martina Maggio, who was wobbly across the majority of her routine and finished 19th. Nina Derwael also would have been a contender had she not fallen on her mount, as she’s down in 29th with a 12.566 with a fall, so adding a point back would put her right in the middle of the eight who made it. The same goes for Mélanie De Jesus Dos Santos in 33rd, and I think Jordan Chiles without two falls could have gotten a second American into the final along with Blakely.
FLOOR EXERCISE QUALIFICATION STANDINGS
1. Flavia Saraiva, Brazil, 14.200
2. Rebeca Andrade, Brazil, 14.200
3. Jessica Gadirova, Great Britain, 14.100
4. Jordan Chiles, United States, 14.100
5. Jade Carey, United States, 14.066
6. Shilese Jones, United States, 13.800
7. Naomi Visser, Netherlands, 13.666
8. Jennifer Gadirova, Great Britain, 13.600
9. Alice D’Amato, Italy, 13.600
R1. Miyata Shoko, Japan, 13.600
R2. Martina Maggio, Italy, 13.500
R3. Ou Yushan, China, 13.400
Again, as with bars, Visser was a bit of a surprise for me here, but otherwise I think this is exactly what I expected? My predictions probably would have pinned Maggio over Visser, but Maggio’s three-tenth out-of-bounds penalty held her back from coming in just behind the crowded top five, which is a bit of a bummer considering she also didn’t make beam and was so great on both at Euros.
I don’t think anyone else really had the difficulty to contend with the group that ultimately made it, though was a little sad to see Ana Barbosu miss out by just three tenths, and I think had Eythora Thorsdottir not sat one of her passes, she would have gotten close despite lower tumbling difficulty, as her execution was quite good, fall aside. The same goes for Alice Kinsella, who had a fall in her set as well.
Article by Lauren Hopkins
The Gymternet 
I found the recommended websites to see scoring useless. But after it was over NBC provided the WAG qualification results at https://olympics.nbcsports.com/2022/10/30/gymnastics-world-championships-results/ with a photo of Shilese Jones. Let’s keep in mind that Peacock is an NBC website
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Jordan, Jordan, JORDAN! Why? She HAS to stop melting on the big stages.
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Yeah, people kept calling her “consistent” after Tokyo because of how she stepped in when Simone had to pull out from the TF, which was great that she was able to come in and help more than she was expected to, but she fell on every event except vault between qualifications and the final so I don’t get it? It’s great that she can hit in NCAA, it’s great that she can hit in domestic competitions within the U.S., it’s even great that she hit her first three events here…but someone of her talent level should not be dropping THAT many international routines. It’s clearly a problem, and people want to sugarcoat it like “but she’s so good on everything else, it’s a fluke” – clearly it isn’t!
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THAT part! I am extremely generous when considering how difficult this sport is. I coach excel level (fell into it as a dance teacher), so I can only imagine the anxiety intl elites (particularly Oly/Worlds level) take on. But I was literally (I hate to say it) disappointed in and for her.
I won’t join any choruses berating her, she is clearly extremely talented, but she’s giving my girl Dawes a run for individual glory meltdowns. Like, I COULD forgive the layout fall (being generous), but the switch leap??!! Stop playing w us Jordan. Step up, or step down.
We all have bad days at work, and this is their work, but consistent bad days on THE MOST ‘IMPORTANT’ DAYS, is not it!
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Fully agree. I also don’t want to be negative or cruel about her in any way but I think it’s important to point out that she simply is not consistent in the way people seem to think she is. After her first three events here I was like ooh, a lot’s changed since Tokyo, but then to see her make mistakes on easy elements she can probably do in her sleep and has done with zero problems all year is just a bummer. I absolutely get that there are nerves involved, even Simone had to see an athletic performance coach for upping her mental game, so it’s not like, you should be ashamed for this…it’s more like, you should probably look into fixing this because wouldn’t it just be nice to not be affected by nerves in a way that’s detrimental to your overall performance??
With how many falls there are at these meets, even from some of the very best, I wouldn’t be concerned if she just had one fall here or there. It’s the fact that she’s done three days of world/Olympic-level competition and with 4 falls in those 12 routines, that’s a hit rate of 67% which isn’t great, especially when she’s been 100% at home in comparison. I’d be worried to use her in a team final at this point, on almost any event except for maybe vault.
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Chiles should still be used on VT UB and FX for the TF I think. BB is the problem for her (2 falls twice on this single event in 3 routines, sort of unprecedented I guess ) , but to be fair it’s a problem for many countries (France had 3 falls yesterday, China and Italy 4 ou 5 etc. even Russia last year was very inconsistent ..). Beam is beam … unless you’re Romania from its golden age.
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@christian the reality is that USA and France are not on the same level. Talent or expectations. Jordan SHOULD be going AA, in the actual AA, and in TF. But after falling on beam on things she consistently nails domestically, and w their point cushion, I’d absolutely take her off of beam in a team final.
Granted, we don’t know what talks were had, but she didn’t earn a spot on beam in the TF. I, personally, would put her up on the other 3 (I def think she’s the type who really values redemption [that she would not get for that asleep beam performance], but performed well elsewhere. If she’s hitting in training on V, UB, and FX, she’s a natural choice.
And yes Lauren, she needs a sport psychologist, if she doesn’t alrdy have 1. I often mention Dawes on these issues because she was the 1st gymn I’d heard of having 1, and the biggest example of literally melting when it’s your time for individual medals. Jordan, like her, will most likely hit in TF, but I wonder what she’ll give us in the FX TF, because we have become used to meltdowns when it’s not for the team.
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^^^
I meant FX EF, not TF. And I also think if she makes the first pass a 1.5 to DLO, she could win gold. She is more than capable of it.
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Totally agree with the accurate Dawes comparison. Vanessa Atler could be another example I dare to say.
It’s pretty obvious to everybody France and the USA are not at the same level of expectations. That’s why I mentionned China and Russia.
About talent …. I confess I am Mister Nobody to judge this. You are not, quite obvioulsy. I have a couple of examples in mind of former or present hugely talented gymnasts that never made top 8 at the olympics … I right now have no reason to think a Melanie JDS is more or less talented than any of the top 5 girls from the US.
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Thank you for telling it like it is! I’m getting really bored of the narrative that chile’s is consistent. As you said it’s great she is consistent in domestic comp but when it matters she never hits, I hope she gets a medal in EF but as far as AA she cannot be trusted. I think jade carey is the most consistent US gymnast and she constantly gets overlooked. I think she will make a statement this worlds and it will be undeniable.
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I am a little shocked with the comments here about Jordan Chiles. She contributed the highest floor score and the 2nd highest scores on vault and bars to the team score in quals. Reading “step down” is a little on the harsh side for me, especially as there is no one who could have replaced those scores. Also I get that Jade Carey is the most consistent but – while I admire her difficulty on floor and vault – the lack of expression makes floor and beam boring to watch tbh. I keep fingers crossed for a strong Team Final and Even Final for the US, especially Jordan. Her endurance over the years without making the teams is admirable.
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Yes, Carey is not as exciting or engaging as Chiles, but that’s not the conversation – the conversation is just about consistency. It’s a fact to say that a 67% hit rate is not super consistent – this doesn’t have any judgments with it on my end, it’s simply true. Chiles is a million other adjectives that give her more pros than cons on my list, but when you’re looking to score the highest possible in a team competition, consistency is key, and I think it’s hard to trust her based on her consistency rate. I hope she knocks it out of the park tonight and I’m glad she is on all four events because I truly enjoy her on all of them! But I’m also a little nervous about beam, however – Chiles is far from the only inconsistent gymnast on the team and I think I trust her over Jones and Blakely, so it’s not like the U.S. has a million 2012 quad Aly Raismans to choose from (consistency-wise, I mean, because again, this has nothing to do anything BUT consistency).
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This is Chiles literal 2nd BIG competition the first being the OLYMPICS. I feel like this reaction is as if she has been to 4 worlds, etc etc. This is her first world championships and people are coming for her…. Suni fell everyday except finals at her first worlds…. I can understand if we take issue with the word consistent to describe her. It was qualifications at her first worlds, she did 3 out of 4, made finals. Yes I would have rather seen her in the AA as the number 2. I feel this talk is a little harsh. Though I understand the perspective.
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That’s exactly what we’re talking about, though, the word consistent and whether it applies to her. It doesn’t, not at international meets yet. She’s fantastic and looked great here but it’s obviously a concern if she’s missing skills that she doesn’t elsewhere. I don’t think it’s harsh to say “she’s not consistent at international meets” when it’s the truth. Some of the talk about her in discussing this gets a little out of control with people being rude, which sucks because I LOVE Chiles and can think of a billion more pros that far overshadow her lack of consistency, but to say that someone who has only hit 67% of their routines is “consistent” is just incorrect, especially when you compare to people who ARE consistent at this level at worlds and the Olympics. This isn’t a “Chiles sucks” conversation, for me it’s “Chiles is excellent and a world class athlete and I love watching her on every event AND when she hypes up the team when she’s not competing BUT she’s just not very consistent and that is concerning for a team final.” That’s it! Also no one said Suni is consistent – I personally she’s super inconsistent, as even many of her hit routines end up being struggles (especially on bars).
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Listen, as a grown black man who witnessed how much hate Gabby Douglas received for beating everyone’s fav, Komova, WHEN IT COUNTED, I would never join a ‘beat up Jordan Chiles’ gang. I wouldn’t do it to Atler, Miller, Khorkina (maybe…she’s a piece of work, and 40, [lowkey I loved her antics in the 90s when everyone was silent and she decided she should get more respect for being the tallest]) or MDJDS either. If this was the 90s, where Dawes or Umeh were feeling the isolation that I can only imagine they felt, I’d be a bit more considerate.
Jordan competes in a space and time where she and 2 other blk women swept the podium at nationals.
And I bring that up because it’s important for gym stans to stop expecting what they’ve seen in the past on every podium.
We are disappointed in Jordan’s performance because we know she is capable of better receipts. And, as expected, she gave them in a TF where I wouldn’t have used her on beam.
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And not Dawes and Umeh mistreated
by other gymnasts, they’ve never mentioned that. I meant judges.
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@Christian – no one can ‘judge’ because no one is in her exact shoes. That said, those who aren’t oblivious or being outright biased or hateful are often going to do what we’re doing here, about it. And yes, MDJDS and Atler are super talents who this discussion could easily also be about.
@Dee ‘step down’ is just about making a point. I don’t expect her to retire, it’s just ‘put up or shut up’. She’s in the big leagues. I’m not diminishing her talent or contributions; that’s WHY what we’re saying might seem harsh.
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Is Flavia competing today or is she injured? If she doesnt compete how will this impact Brazil?
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I have got a similar question. Flavia is scheduled for today, but how are the rules, if her injury turns out to be more serious during the competition? Are they allowed to change the lineup?
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Unless the rules have changed, yes a country is allowed to change the lineup.
Each team has named 3 gymnasts on each apparatus + 2 alternates they can use, injury or not, as long as the rotation has not started. Even if the injury happens during the 3 minutes (?) warm up they can still replace her for the rotation. That’s rare but it has happened in the past.
@Lucia: Flavia is scheduled to compete on all 4s tonight and her medical case will be reexamined after the competition to decide her participation to the AA and FX EF. If she doesn’t compete – to answer your question – I expect Brazil to finish last. Just my feeling.
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Love u Lauren!
Thanks for providing the space.
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