*PARIS 2024 - RHYTHMIC GYMNASTICS

* P r e v i e w: In the rhythmic gymnastics group competition, world champions Israel, European champions Bulgaria and a strong team from the People's Republic of China will face Italy, Spain, Brazil and hosts France in one of the least predictable competitions in Olympic history.
Fourteen groups will compete for the Olympic all-around title.
Of course, Olympic champions Bulgaria will be looking to defend their title, but with a completely new group of gymnasts: Magdalina Minevska, Kamelia Petrova, Sofia Ivanova, Rachel Stoyanov and Margarita Vasileva recently became European all-around champions and will be hoping to win a competition that will be characterised by incredible skill and artistry. Other medal contenders are the groups from Spain, the People's Republic of China, Israel and Italy. They have all won medals at continental and world championships in recent years, so the competition between all 14 groups for a place in the final eight is eagerly awaited..
* Source: fig-info
  ► S C H E D U L E (LOCAL TIME)

.* T o d a y, Saturday, August 10,

♦  THE GROUP ALL-AROUND  FINAL

*  Final report --: It was drama at the Porte de la Chapelle Arena. right from the start as the eight finalists took to the carpet to contest the Olympic group title.
* France opened the proceedings with their enchanting 5 Hoops routine, to roars from the crowd, setting the scene for an unpredictable final.
<< At the halfway stage, it was the People’s Republic of CHINA who took an unassailable lead with 36.950, showing imaginative acrobatic elements, skillful exchanges of the 5 Hoops and fascinating changes in tempo with the music. They consolidated this advantage with a gracious and stylish 3 Ribbons and 2 Balls routine, with music that perfectly represented their culture. A score of 32.850 gave them a total of 69.800 and the Olympic title. Group members Ding Xinyi, Guo Qiqi, Hao Ting, Huang Zhangjiayang and Wang Lanjing have made history for their nation, winning the first ever Rhythmic Gymnastics Group Olympic gold medal to surpass China’s previous best result, a silver in Beijing 2008.
.
* The silver medal was taken by ISRAEL, who lept from fifth to second place with a heartfelt homage to the Moulin Rouge, complete with a depiction of the windmill’s sails with their ribbons. In both their routines they showed breathtaking high throws and imaginative body movements.This result is also record-breaking for Israel, the 2023 All-Around world champions, who have never won an Olympic Group medal until now.
* The group from ITALY  were sitting in third place after their first routine with 5 Hoops, and maintained this position after their second routine to take the bronze medal. This is their fourth Rhythmic Group Olympic medal, after winning silver at Athens 2004 and bronze at London 2012 and Tokyo 2020.
* Defending champions Bulgaria could not reach the medal podium again, finishing in fourth place after some small errors. The standings for the remaining groups were Azerbaijan, France, Ukraine and Uzbekistan in fifth to eighth place.

♦     RESULTS - GROUP ALL-AROUND
1. C H I N A    36,650 + 32,850 = 69,800
2. I S R A E L  35,600 + 33,250 = 68,850 
3. I T A L Y      36,100 + 32,000 = 68,100
4. Bulgaria        34,100  +  33,700 = 67,800
       5. Azerbaijjan   34,850   +  31,600 = 66450
       6. France          35,750   +  30,250 = 66,000
       7. Ukraine          36,550   +  29,150 = 65,700
       8. Uzbekistan    34,050   +  30,450 = 64,500
               ► Detailed results
   + + +

* Friday, August 9

  Qualification, GROUPS, All-around ►Start list

* Short commentary --: After exercise 1 of the qualification with the 5 hoops, Italy's lead as bronze medallists from Tokyo was not unexpected. However, with 38.200 points, they relegated Olympic champions Bulgaria to second place by half a point. The 3rd place of the French women in the sold-out and enthusiastic Arena Porte de la Chapelle, who finished ahead of China and Brazil with 36.600 points, was highly acclaimed!
There were disappointed faces among the Israeli girls behind them in 7th place, as well as the co-favourites from Spain, who only finished a disappointing 13th with major mistakes, while Germany's group in 9th place will also have to improve in the 2nd round with 3 ribbons/2 balls in order to reach tomorrow's group final of the best eight.
► Intermediate Results (- after 5 hoops)

* In the 2nd round of the combined routine (3 ribbons/2 balls), the Ukrainians took the lead with impressive difficulty (18.800!) + group harmony ahead of the Chinese, both of whom secured their place in the final.
At the top, Bulgaria passed the Italians with higher difficulty and better execution and took the lead until the end.
Once again, the hall went wild with the French, who were not completely flawless, but were sensational and almost brought the hall to a boil! 4th place - qualification achieved! That in itself was a minor sensation, but everyone was probably in favour of the Olympic hosts based on their performance!
Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan also made it to the final in 7th and 8th place, while last year's World Championship bronze medallists Spain were eliminated (9th)!
Also disappointing was the disastrous elimination of the German group, who slipped to penultimate place out of the 14 nations after a dramatic tape tangle and various mistakes with the second-lowest execution score (3.95 - only Egypt was weaker).
► Final standing, qualification
.
+ + +