Road to Wroclaw: Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships in China
Six World titles and berths to compete at The World Games in 2017 are up for grabs at the Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships in China (1-3 April).
Putian welcomes 152 athletes from 21 countries– including first-time competitor Iran – as gymnasts get set to compete for World glory. While Marina Chernova, who competes in Mixed Pairs is the only 2014 World gold medalist attempting to defend her title, competition on the Acro scene is ripe with new faces hungry for glory at the world level.
The best in Putian will also qualify their countries a place to compete at The World Games next year in Wroclaw, Poland. Apart from the World Championships, The World Games is considered the premiere event for Acrobatic gymnasts.
At the end of the qualification round, the top five countries in each category will have earned places to compete in Wroclaw, with a maximum of one place per country. An additional berth in each discipline may be attributed by the FIG Executive Committee following the competition to assure host country participation or continental representation.
Acrobatic Gymnastics has a long and successful history in China. The country’s celebrated Men's Group has won the past two World titles with gasp-worthy, gravity defying Acrobatics, and this year a the new four-man Group of Zheng Li, Luoming Rui, Zhang Teng and Zhou Jiahuai, aims to continue the tradition.
"We are delighted to be in China, to be able to promote this sport here in such a large Asian country," said FIG Vice President Slava Corn at a delegation meeting Wednesday. "I am convinced that with this help, Acrobatic Gymnastics will continue to develop in China."