Mixed team final to debut at European Gymnastics Championships
The mixed team final will make its competition debut at the Artistic European Gymnastics Championships.The championships, in Leipzig, Germany, begin on Monday.British Olympian Ruby Evans believes the mixed team event - which has also been added to the Los Angeles Olympics programme for 2028 - is an "exciting" addition.Evans says it "adds a different challenge and a bit of variety to the championships".But what is it and how does it work?One female and one male gymnast from each federation will compete in the event - in which scores in individual events are added together to make a team total.Female gymnasts will score on vault, balance beam and floor, while male gymnasts compete on floor, parallel and horizontal bars - and the 16 mixed teams with the best scores in individual qualification go through to the final. The make-up of the teams is not decided in advance - it is determined by the qualification scores.Jake Jarman, an Olympic floor bronze medallist for Team GB in Paris last year, said: "It's a great way to bring men's and women's gymnastics together. It's going to be really interesting to see the mixed team event debut and see how it goes down with the audience and fans."You can watch the mixed team final live on BBC iPlayer from 15:50 BST on Wednesday, 28 May.
Who else should I look out for?
Luke Whitehouse, Harry Hepworth and Jonas Rushworth make up a strong contingent from Leeds Gymnastics Centre.They will compete alongside world medallist Courtney Tulloch, British all-around champion Jamie Lewis and Olympian Jarman.Whitehouse will bid to defend his European floor title, telling BBC Sport: "I try not to think about the pressure. If I do, then I try to use it as an extra motivator."Pressure is a privilege. To go out there and win the title two years on the trot would be incredible."The men are joined by a less experienced women's team, made up of new British all-around champion Alia Leat, Ruby Stacey and Ruby Evans.Emily Roper and Frances Stone will make their respective senior major championship debuts.
How to follow
Wednesday, 28 May: Mixed team final - 15:50-18:20 on BBC iPlayer.Thursday, 29 May: Women's all-around - 13:00-15:00 on BBC Two; and men's all-around 17:25-20:20 on BBC iPlayer.Friday, 30 May: Apparatus finals - 15:00-18:00 on BBC Two; and rings final 18:00-18:40 on BBC iPlayer.Saturday, 31 May: Apparatus finals - 12:00-16:00 on BBC Two.All times are BST and subject to change
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
33 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Warmth and passion: Chappers ushers in new era for Match of the Day
He's spent years sitting on the bench, playing second fiddle to one of England's best ever strikers. But now that Gary Lineker has hung up his boots and bid farewell to Match of the Day after 26 years, Mark Chapman can finally have his moment. While more casual fans won't be aware of what the veteran broadcaster – affectionately known as 'Chappers' – will bring as the new focal point, to the diehards he's long been a known quantity. Widely respected for his relaxed manner and astute questioning, Chapman, 51, has hosted Match of the Day 2 on Sunday nights since 2013 (while occasionally covering for Lineker) and also presents a number of sports programmes across BBC Radio 5 Live. But before establishing himself as one of the top broadcasters in the country, he began his career more than five decades ago, as a continuity announcer on BBC television in 1996. He then became the cricket correspondent for BBC North East radio, before joining BBC Radio 1 as a Newsbeat sports reader on the Sara Cox and Scott Mills shows – where he developed the nickname 'Chappers'. He later joined BBC Radio 5 Live to host 5 Live Sport on Mondays. Alongside his run on Match of the Day 2, he was also BBC Sport's chief rugby league presenter, fronting its coverage of the Rugby League World Cup and RFL Challenge Cup matches. Chapman is one of Match of the Day's three new hosts, alongside Kelly Cates and Gabby Logan. While Cates will present a UEFA Super Cup highlights show on Wednesday and Logan will present the newly rebranded Match of the Day on Sunday, the three will rotate across the shows throughout the season. He's always been passionate about the game, declaring early in his career that he spent his time off 'playing football and watching football'. When asked to describe himself in three words, he opted for 'stroppy, moody and temperamental'. Appearing on the Scott Mills Breakfast show on Friday alongside the other two hosts, Chapman joked with Mills about their time working together. 'He never took off his coat,' Mills reminisced, 'he was there for a good time, not a long time.' Mills also highlighted one of his BBC diary entries from the early noughties, when the pair went to Magaluf with Jo Whiley. 'We went to dinner with DJ Sammy in Palma except for Chappers, who decided to shun a swanky celebrity dinner in order to do research on the Magaluf bar scene. Apparently, when you walk down the street, there are people who physically drag you into bars and force you to drink two pints for two euros with a free shot. Poor Chappers never stood a chance,' the entry read. Others have also said it is Chapman's warmth, humour and experience that make him a joy to work with. 'He's somebody that knows the game very well, is deeply passionate about it and is very good at providing a space where all the different pundits and people involved feel comfortable,' said Nedum Onuoha, who worked with Chapman on Planet Premier League. 'He tries to get the best out of you. He is very good at being able to create a show that's enjoyable, and I think that goes a long way in punditry.' Onuoha said Chapman was 'really funny and dry with certain things'. He said the presenter always remembered 'that it is a game' and wanted people to have fun. 'He knows that laughing brings people together, as opposed to arguing about things that honestly don't really matter. His personality is a great one, he's fun to be around and that can really make a difference, especially for new people entering the industry.' Chapman lived with his wife, Sara, in Hale, Greater Manchester until her death from cancer in 2020. The couple had three children together. One of the things that will undoubtedly be welcomed by BBC bosses is Chapman's approach to social media. He hasn't posted on X since January 2021, which sets him apart from his predecessor, who quit the BBC after an antisemitism row and never shied away from expressing his views on topics from the war in the Middle East to the UK government's immigration policy. Asked about the principal duties of a pundit in an interview with the Guardian in 2018, Chapman said: 'To inform, entertain and give an opinion. They don't always have to do highbrow analysis or be controversial – there's a balance to be found.' Match of the Day's new rotating line up, featuring two women, is a far cry from the days of Jimmy Hill and Des Lynam at the helm. But while leaning in to the change, Chapman and his co-hosts have worked to avoid comparisons to their predecessors. 'It helps that we're all really different from Gary [Lineker], in that he does it with a profile of his own as an England legend,' Cates has said. 'It's a very different career path. An ex-player taking over would be more of a direct comparison.'
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Daily Mail
How Manchester City and Pep Guardiola got the 'fire in the belly' back: Erling Haaland's targets, the stars with most to prove, Hugo Viana's immediate impact and the truth about Gianluigi Donnarumma and Rodrygo
Pep Guardiola burst through one wing of an aristocratic villa that was in danger of becoming a little claustrophobic. A hoodie on, the guy sweltered in Sicilian heat at gone 9pm. A seemingly never-ending day still had some embers left. He looked frazzled and the season, a season that could define the final acts of Guardiola's time in England, hadn't even started yet.
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Daily Mail
How Luton Town stopped the slump: Matt Bloomfield reveals the turning point for the Hatters, the one thing they refuse to discuss and what's new this summer as they target rapid return to Championship
After back-to-back relegations and sinking from the Premier League to League One in little over a year, you could forgive the Luton Town powerbrokers if they spent their summer sitting around feeling sorry for themselves. But two days after the drop was confirmed, boss Matt Bloomfield walked into a room with chairman Gary Sweet, assistant manager Richard Thomas and operations chief James Mooney – and told them there was no point in looking back. From here, the only way is up.
