2012 London Olympics

Men's Olympic Qualifications - Team USA and Danell Leyva Lead the Way

Men's Olympic Qualifications - Team USA and Danell Leyva Lead the Way

Jul 20, 2012 by Danny Sierra
Men's Olympic Qualifications - Team USA and Danell Leyva Lead the Way

When: Monday, July 30th

Will Team USA Bring Home Gold?

Team USA is hours away from destiny. Men getting ready!





The Men's Team Finals start today at 11:30 AM EST.

Team USA had a great showing on Saturday and come into the competition today as the favorites. Team GB is the talk of the town after they defeated China in the qualifying. Going into the Finals Team GB is ranked third, so you know the home crowd will be loud and enthusisastic for the hometown team.

This is how the teams ended up in the qualifying:

TEAM:
1. USA- 275.342
2. Russia- 272.595
3. Great Britain- 272.420
4. Germany- 270.888
5. Japan- 270.503
6. China- 269.985
7. Ukraine- 269.810
8. France- 265.759

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Welcome to your home for the 2012 Olympic Games men's qualifications. This page will be updated throughout the week with breaking news and pertinent information specific to the men's qualification round. 


When: Saturday, July 28



How to advance to team and individual finals
The top eight teams after qualifications based will advance to team finals. Individually, the top 24 all-around gymnasts qualify to the all-around final, while the top eight scorers on each event advance to the individual apparatus finals.  However, only two gymnasts per country may advance to individual and all-around finals.

***The Men's Qualifications consist of 3 subdivisions on Saturday, July 28.***

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Men's Team, All Around and Event Finals Qualifiers- 2012 London Olympics
July 28, 2012


TEAM:
1. USA- 275.342
2. Russia- 272.595
3. Great Britain- 272.420
4. Germany- 270.888
5. Japan- 270.503
6. China- 269.985
7. Ukraine- 269.810
8. France- 265.759

ALL AROUND:
1. Danell Leyva (USA)- 91.265
2. David Belyavskiy (RUS)- 90.832
3. Fabian Hambuchen (GER)- 90.765
4. John Orozco (USA)- 90.597
5. Kristian Thomas (GBR)- 90.256
6. Mykola Kuksenkov (UKR)- 89.931
7. Marcel Nguyen (GER)- 89.833
8. Emin Garibov (RUS)- 89.798
9. Kohei Uchimura (JPN)- 89.764
10. Daniel Purvis (GBR)- 89.199
11. Sergio Sasaki (BRA)- 89.132
12. Alexander Shatilov (ISR)- 89.032
13. Oleg Verniaiev (UKR)- 88.964
14. Cyril Tommasone (FRA)- 88.698
15. Fabian Gonzalez (ESP)- 88.365
16. Javier Gomez Fuertes (ESP)- 88.123
17. Koji Yamamuro (JPN)- 87.632
18. Claudio Capelli (SUI)- 87.598
19. Enrico Pozzo (ITA)- 86.898
20. Kim Soo Myun (KOR)- 86.331
21. Paolo Ottavi (ITA)- 86.331
22. Flavius Koczi (ROM)- 85.865
23. Joshua Jefferis (AUS)- 85.598
24. Roman Kulesza (POL)- 84.698


FLOOR EXERCISE:
1. Zou Kai (CHN)- 15.833
2. Kohei Uchimura (JPN)- 15.766
3. Flavius Koczi (ROM)- 15.666
4. Jake Dalton (USA)- 15.633
    Alexander Shatilov (ISR)- 15.633
6. Tomas Gonzalez Sepulveda (CHI)- 15.533
7. Marcel Nguyen (GER)- 15.433
8. Denis Ablyazin (RUS)- 15.433

POMMEL HORSE:
1. Louis Smith (GBR)- 15.8
2. Cyril Tommasone (FRA)- 15.333
3. Vid Hidvegi (HUN)- 15.1
4. Alberto Busnari (ITA)- 15.058
5. Krisztian Berki (HUN)- 15.033
6. Vatalii Nakonechnyi (UKR)- 14.933
7. David Belyavskiy (RUS)- 14.9
8. Max Whitlock (GBR)- 14.9

STILL RINGS:
1. Chen Yibing (CHN)- 15.858
2. Matteo Morandi (ITA)- 15.766
3. Aleksandr Balandin (RUS)- 15.666
4. Arthur Zanetti (BRA)- 15.616
5. Denis Ablyazin (RUS)- 15.5
6. Tommy Ramos (PUR)- 15.5
7. Federico Molinari (ARG)- 15.333
8. Jordan Jovtchev (BUL)- 15.308

VAULT:
1. Denis Ablyazin (RUS)- 16.366
2. Yang Hak Seon (KOR)- 16.333
3. Tomas Gonzalez Sepulveda (CHI)- 16.149
4. Sam Mikulak (USA)- 16.083
5. Kristian Thomas (GBR)- 15.983
6. Flavius Koczi (ROM)- 15.949
7. Isaac Botella Perez (ESP)- 15.833
8. Igor Radivilov (UKR)- 15.799

PARALLEL BARS:
1. Yusuke Tanaka (JPN)- 15.866
2. Kazuhito Tanaka (JPN)- 15.725
3. Feng Zhe (CHN)- 15.633
4. Emin Garibov (RUS)- 15.6
5. Marcel Nguyen (GER)- 15.525
6. Vasileios Tsolakidis (GRE)- 15.466
7. Daniel Corral Barron (MEX)- 15.433
8. Zhang Chenglong (CHN)- 15.366

HIGH BAR:
1. Epke Zonderland (NED)- 15.966
2. Zhang Chenglong (CHN)- 15.933
3. Danell Leyva (USA)- 15.866
4. Fabian Hambuchen (GER)- 15.633
5. Jonathan Horton (USA)- 15.566
6. Emin Garibov (RUS)- 15.566
7. Zou Kai (CHN)- 15.533
8. Kim Jihoon (KOR)- 15.5
For full results from Men's Qualifications, click HERE.

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Russia and Germany Qualify to Team Finals

After the third subdivision, the United States has held their lead and will be advancing to team finals in first place (275.342). Russia taking second place (272.595), Great Britain being pushed to third (272.420) and Germany sliding into fourth (270.888). After many uncharacteristic falls from both Japan and China, they placed fifth (270.503) and sixth (269.985). Ukraine (269.810) finished on the heels of China and France clinched the last qualifying spot (265.759). 

At the beginning of the third subdivision, World silver medalist, Philipp Boy of Germany, injured his ankle on his very first event. However, this injury did not cause him to quit. He fought to the finish for Germany on every event after. Coming in as a possible medalist in the all-around, Boy did not qualify for the all-around or any event finals. Fabian Hambuchen, teammate of Boy, placed third in the all-around (90.765) pushing John Orozco to fourth. Hambuchen also qualified for the high bar event finals with a fairly clean and precise routine. Finishing in seventh, Marcel Nguyen was the second member of Germany to qualify for the all-around finals. He also qualified for the floor exercise final performing a clean laid out double double and an easy full in dismount. Nguyen finished fifth on the parallel bars performing a full in dismount with only a small hop on the landing and will advance to event finals. 

David Belyavskiy from Russia placed second in the all-around (90.832) behind Danell Levya (91.265). He also qualified for the pommel horse event finals. The other all-around finals competitor for Russia is Emin Garibov. He also individually qualified for the parallel bar and high bar event finals. Russia had some stand out performances by Denis Ablyazin on the vault placing first with a score of 16.366 and Aleksandr Balandin scoring a 15.666 on the still rings, advancing him to event finals with teammate Denis Ablyazin.               

Ukraine will advance to the team finals in seventh place with two all-around competitors advancing to finals and two other competitors advancing to event finals. Vatalii Nakonechnyi earned a score of 14.933 which placed him sixth on the pommel horse, only one spot behind 2011 World Champion Krisztian Berki of Hungary. Igor Radivilov earned the last qualification spot for vault finals scoring a 15.799. Coming into qualifications he was seen as a major gold medal contender for this event. Mykola Kuksenkov (89.931) and Oleg Verniaiev (88.964) are the two all-around qualifiers representing Ukraine. 

Both Spain and Romania failed to make the team finals, but will have contenders representing them in the all-around and event finals. Fabian Gonzalez (88.365) and Javier Gomez Fuertes (88.123) will be the two competitors representing Spain in the all-around finals. Flavius Koczi  (85.865) was the only Romanian gymnast to qualify for the all-around final. Koczi was also the only Romanian gymnast to make an event final. Scoring a 15.666, Koczi placed third on the floor exercise, advancing him to the finals. He also qualified for the vault event finals scoring a 15.949. Isaac Botella Perez of Spain also qualified for the vault event finals scoring a 15.833. This score placed him right behind Koczi. 

Jordan Jovtchev of Bulgaria just made the cut for the still rings finals scoring a 15.308. This is his sixth Olympics at the age of thirty nine. In a conversation with Gymnastike Jovtchev said that he wished he didn't qualify to finals only because he is tired and his body is sore. 

The Men's Team Finals will be held on Monday, July 30 - 11:30 a.m. ET
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Brits shock China!



The British men's team pulled off an unlikely win over China in the first subdivision of the men's qualification round in London, 272.420-269.985.  The Brits were led by Kristian Thomas, whose strong performances earned him first place in the all around qualifications thus far.  

Great Britain began the day with a good start on rings, one of its weakest pieces.  The team next went to vault, showing strong technique, form and landings to gain momentum.  They kept it together on parallel bars and high bar, despite some errors and came back strong on floor exercise, led by Thomas's 15.366.  Max Whitlock (15.266) and Daniel Purvis (15.2) weren't far behind.

The British men led China for the first time heading into the last rotation; the home crowd was electric. Purvis felt the nerves, coming off pommels as the lead-off.  But Whitlock got the team back on track, scoring 14.9 for a tidy routine. 

That set up 2008 Olympic bronze medalist Louis Smith, who hit a crowd-pleasing routine for a score of 15.80, clinching Britain's lead over the defending World and Olympic champion Chinese team. Smith celebrated the moment in tears, receiving huge support from the home crowd and was compelled to stand up and thank them.

Moments after walking off the floor Smith summed it up.  

"It was just unbelievable. It's been an emotional four years for the team. And we've had a lot of pressure since Beijing to qualify for this Olympics. The crowd was fantastic. It was a beautiful partnership."  

Britain also finished 1-2 in the all around, as Thomas (90.256) holds the lead over Daniel Purvis (89.199).  Thomas also sits in second place on vault, where his Tsukahara double pike and handspring double front earned an average of 15.983, and a shot at making event finals.

Team China was far off their game, seeming to record one shocking error after another.  Guo Weiyang, the alternate inserted into the lineup to replace 2004 Olympic Champion Teng Haibin, had a disastrous showing, giving away huge errors on floor exercise, parallel bars and pommel horse.  

Zhang Chenglong also slipped off pommels, falling nearly onto his head after missing a hand.  Zou Kai struggled throughout, with numerous form breaks.  Chen Yibing posted China's highest number on pommel horse - only a 14.466.  That single rotation handed Great Britain a three-point lead over the Chinese, which they would not make up in the final rotation.

Zou Kai, Chen Yibing, Feng Zhe and Zhang Chenglong delivered some of the highlights for China, as Zou leads the floor exercise with a big 15.833 (laid out double-double, tucked double-double dismount).  Likewise, 2008 gold medalist Chen Yibing leads on his best event, the still rings, where he posted a massive 15.858.  

Feng Zhe is currently in first on parallel bars (15.633), while Zhang Chenglong hit a fantastic high bar set for a 15.933.  Defending Olympic champion Zou Kai could have done better, scoring a 15.533 - questionable for event finals.

France finished third in the subdivision (265.759) with Korea ending up in fourth (255.327).

Other standout performances in the subdivision included the "Flying Dutchman" Epke Zonderland's event-leading high bar performance (15.966), France's Gael da Silva on floor (15.4) and Cyril Tommasone on pommels (15.333), along with Tommy Ramos from Puerto Rice on rings (15.5).

Defending World vault champion Yang Hak Seon from Korea leads the event thus far, averaging 16.333.  Yang didn't perform his signature handspring triple twist, and struggled slightly with his landings.

The next men's subdivision begins at 10:30 a.m. ET, and features the United States, Italy, Japan andseveral mixed groups.

For full results from Subdivision 1, click HERE.


Team USA Lineups Released (7/27)

The USA men's line-up for the qualification round at the London 2012 Olympic Games has been submitted. The men will compete in the second of three subdivisions at the North Greenwich Arena on Saturday, July 28, at 3:30 p.m. London time. The teams and individual gymnasts who advance to the final rounds will be determined at the conclusion of the final subdivision.
 
Due to the 5 member team and the 4 up prelim format, Sam Mikulak will not have the opportunity to compete all around. This is unfortunate as he could have potentially contended for a spot in all around finals along with Danell Leyva and John Orozco. Instead, Jake Dalton will compete on still rings, which is a smart decision for the team, as he will be the guy needed for team finals, which changes to a 3 up, 3 count format. 
 
The U.S. men's line-up is:
Pommel horse:  Horton, Mikulak, Leyva, Orozco
Still rings:  Dalton, Leyva, Orozco, Horton
Vault:  Leyva, Orozco, Mikulak, Dalton
Parallel bars: Mikulak, Horton, Orozco, Leyva
Horizontal bar:  Mikulak, Orozco, Horton, Leyva
Floor exercise:  Orozco, Leyva, Mikulak, Dalton




COMPLETE SCHEDULE and DRAW:


Subdivision 1 (MG 3, KOR, GBR, CHN, FRA, MG 4)- 6 a.m. ET
                FLOOR: Mixed Group 3
                           Artur Davtyan (Armenia)
                           Federico Molinari (Argentina)
                           Dmitijs Trefilovs (Latvia)
                           Kieran Behan (Ireland)
                           Mohammed Sherif El Saharty (Egypt)
                           Samuel Piasecky (Slovakia)
                POMMELS: Korea
                RINGS: Great Britain
                VAULT: China
                P BARS: France
                HIGH BAR: Mixed Group 4
                           Tommy Ramos (Puerto Rico)
                           Filip Ude (Croatia)
                           Epke Zonderland (Netherlands)
                           Shakir Shikhaliyev (Azerbaijan)
                           Claudio Capelli (Switzerland)
                           Martin Konecny (Czech Republic)
 
Subdivision 2 (ITA, USA, MG 6, MG 5, MG 1, JPN)- 10:30 a.m. ET
               FLOOR: Italy
               POMMELS: USA
               RINGS: Mixed Group 6
                          Roman Kulesza (Poland)
                          Daniel Corral Barron (Mexico)
                          Jimmy Verbaeys (Belgium)
                          Jorge Giraldo (Colombia)
                          Nathan Gafuik (Canada)
                          Quazi Syque Caesar (Bangladesh)
               VAULT: Mixed Group 5
                          Diego Hypolito (Brazil)
                          Arthur Zanetti (Brazil)
                          Sergio Sasaki (Brazil)
                          Shek Wai Hung (Hong Kong)
                          Fabian Lehmlehner (Austria)
                          Tomas Gonzalez (Chile)
                          Rokas Guscinas (Lithuania)
              P BARS: Mixed Group 1
                          Alexander Shatilov (Israel)
                          Felix Aronovich (Israel)
                          Krisztian Berki (Hungary)
                          Vid Hidvegi (Hungary)
                          Vasileios Tsolakidis (Greece)
                          Vlasios Maras (Greece)
                          Joshua Jefferis (Australia)
              HIGH BAR: Japan

Subdivision 3 (ESP, UKR, ROM, GER, MG 2, RUS)- 3 p.m. ET
              FLOOR: Spain
              POMMELS: Ukraine
              RINGS: Romania
              VAULT: Germany
              P BARS: Mixed Group 2
                         Stepan Gorbachev (Kazakhstan)
                         Manuel Campos (Portugal)
                         Jordan Jovtchev (Bulgaria)
                         Dzmitry Kaspiarovich (Belarus)
                         Phuoc Hung Pham (Vietnam)
                         Wajdi Bouallegue (Tunisia)
              HIGH BAR: Russia


Gymnastike will be in London providing LIVE updates of each competition session. Click here to jump to the Olympic gymnastics live updates page.