Current Gymnasts to Watch
The American stars of the sport right now are:- Jonathan Horton: 2009 US national champion, 2-time Olympic medalist in 2008 (silver, high bar; bronze, team)
- Tim McNeill: 2009 US all-around silver medalist
- Joseph Hagerty: 2008 Olympic bronze medalist (team), 2009 Winter Cup champion
- Alexander (Sasha) Artemev: 2006 US national all-around champion, 2006 world bronze medalist on pommel horse, 2008 Olympic bronze medalist (team)
- Steve Legendre: 2009 world team member and amazing tumbler
Foreign gymnasts to watch:
- Kohei Uchimura (Japan): 2008 Olympic all-around silver medalist
- Jordan Jovtchev (Bulgaria): 12-time world medalist (1995, 1996, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007), 4-time Olympic medalist (2000, 2004)
- Fabian Hambuechen (Germany): 5-time world medalist (2006, 2007)
- Zou Kai (China): 3-time Olympic gold medalist in 2008 (team, floor, high bar)
- Marian Dragulescu (Romania): 3-time world champion on vault (2001, 2005, 2006), 3-time World Champion on floor (2001, 2002, 2006)
- Chen Yibing (China): Olympic gold medalist on rings, 2-time world champion on rings
- Diego Hypolito (Brazil): 2-time world champion on floor (2005, 2007)
- Aljaz Pegan (Slovenia): 4-time world high bar medalist (gold in 2005)
Current Top Teams
- China: The 2006 and 2007 world champions and the 2008 Olympic champion, China is the team to beat in almost every competition. Though the Chinese have lost all-around superstar Yang Wei, they have a very deep pool of athletes from which to choose. The Chinese team used to be known for crumbling under pressure (at the 2004 Olympics, the heavily-favored team fell to fifth in the team finals,) but in recent years, this hasn't been a problem.
- Japan: The 2004 Olympic champion, Japan was also the runner-up in the 2007 worlds and the 2008 Olympics. With strong all-arounders like Kohei Uchimura, Japan can usually give China a run for its money if China has a miss. Japanese gymnasts are known for their clean form and technique, and their history of winning Olympic gold – 6 team titles in all.
- Russia: Second at the 2006 worlds, an injured Russian team only managed 7th at the 2007 worlds, and had a disappointing 6th place finish at the 2008 Olympics. Russia can be one of the top teams in the world, though, and like Japan, has a history of winning Olympic gold medals dating back to the former Soviet Union in 1956.
- Romania: Third as a team at the 2004 Olympics, the Romanian team placed 4th at the 2006 worlds before placing a dismal 8th in 2007 and 7th at the 2008 Olympics. The team shouldn’t be counted out though, and could land on the podium at worlds.
- United States: The US won the silver at both the 2003 World Championships and 2004 Olympic Games, then dropped to 13th at the 2006 worlds. The team surged to 4th place at the 2007 worlds, however, and landed an inspiring team bronze at the 2008 Olympics.
- Germany: Germany won a somewhat-surprising bronze medal in front of a home crowd at the 2007 World Championships. In 2008, the team finished just off the podium in 4th. With charismatic leader Fabian Hambuechen, the Germans could vie for a medal again.
