This week will see multi-discipline competition around the world as U.S. athletes compete in national and international-level competition.
It will be a Stanford University affair at the FIG Cottbus World Cup February 22-25 in Germany, where reigning U.S. all-around champion Asher Hong (Tomball, Texas), 2023 Pan American Games team champion Colt Walker (Austin, Texas) and three-time World medalist Khoi Young (Bowie, Md.) will take the floor for the U.S.
The Apparatus World Cup in Cottbus kicks off Thursday at 8 a.m. ET with floor exercise, pommel horse and still rings qualifications. Friday’s action begins at the same time with vault, parallel bars and horizontal bar. Both final sessions on Saturday and Sunday start at 7:45 a.m. ET. The competition will stream live on FIG’s new pay-per-view streaming service, figtv.sport. Complete information about the event can be found on the competition website.
The 2024 U.S. rhythmic season will start with the 2024 Rhythmic Challenge this Thursday through Saturday in Lake Placid, N.Y. The event will feature elite junior and senior individual athletes and groups, and performances will help determine international assignments through the rest of the year.
Athletes participating include Olympian Lili Mizuno (Northbrook, Ill./North Shore Rhythmic Gymnastics Center) and 2023 U.S. all-around silver medalist Alexandria Kautzman (Simi Valley, Calif./California Rhythms) in the senior division, with 2023 Junior World clubs bronze medalist Rin Keys (Porter Ranch, Calif./Burlo Gymnastics), 2023 World ball finalist Megan Chu (San Diego, Calif./Pacific Stars Rhythmic Academy) and 2023 U.S. junior all-around bronze medalist Ksenia Potoski (Brooklyn, N.Y./Isadora by Matchpoint) making their senior debuts. In the junior division, Natalia de la Rosa (Woodland Hills, Calif./Burlo Gymnastics) will headline after a successful 2023 international season.
Athletes will compete in all four apparatus with all-around titles on the line. Complete information about the competition is available on the event website and live scoring is expected to be available on ksis.eu.
Baku, Azerbaijan, will be the starting location of the U.S. trampoline & tumbling program’s season, where eight senior athletes will compete at the FIG Baku World Cup February 23-25.
Headlining the U.S. lineup are Olympians Nicole Ahsinger (Lafayette, La./Trampoline and Tumbling Express) and Aliaksei Shostak (Lafayette, La./Trampoline and Tumbling Express), and they will be joined by four-time World champion Ruben Padilla (Bluffdale, Utah/Wasatch Trampoline & Tumbling), two-time World champion Sarah Webster (Lafayette, La./Trampoline and Tumbling Express) and 2023 World team champion Isaac Rowley (Allen, Texas/Eagle Gymnastics Academy). 2023 U.S. trampoline bronze medalist Ryan Maccagnan (Colorado Springs, Colo./Stars Gymnastics), 2022 U.S. trampoline and synchronized trampoline bronze medalist Ava Hernando (Holmdel, N.J./Elite Trampoline Academy) and 2023 World Age Group Competitions 17-21 synchro bronze medalist Logan McCoy (Highlands, N.J./Elite Trampoline Academy), will also perform for the U.S.
Competition begins with individual qualifications on Friday, February 23 at 3 a.m. ET, followed by Day 2 qualifications on Saturday at the same time. Qualifying rounds for synchro kick off later on Saturday at 7:20 a.m. ET. Sunday, February 25 is slated for all finals starting at 3 a.m. ET where champions will be named. An AGF Trophy will also be awarded to the individuals and synchro pairs with the highest execution scores of the day.
All information about the World Cup is available on the competition website including the full schedule and results. Live stream information can be found on figtv.sport.