The women’s Artistic Gymnastics Team is set to shine under the lights of Bercy Arena. The team will be aiming for a top-eight finish at the end of qualifications on Day Two.
Fielding a full team of five for the first time since London 2012, the squad will be looking to break into the top eight and qualify for the Team Final.
Dual Olympian Emily Whitehead leads, with debutants Kate McDonald, Ruby Pass, Breanna Scott, and Emma Nedov joining her on the competition floor.
“We're hoping to make the top eight (team final) - that's the goal,” Emily said.
“Right now, the focus is purely on the team.”
The Aussie’s will be joined by the Brazilian Team in their subdivision, with powerhouse nations including China, Japan, Great Britain, and the USA set to compete in earlier sessions.
The USA enters the competition looking to make a statement, boasting two Individual All-Around gold medallists, Simone Biles (Rio 2016) and Sunisa Lee (Tokyo 2020).
With the arena having hosted the Men’s Qualification on Day One of the Games, the stage is set for the Australian Team to make their mark on the competition.
“I'm excited to see what this arena can hold and how that brings us all together,” Emily said.
The team qualification format consists of four athletes competing on each apparatus, with the three highest scores contributing to the team's overall qualification score.
The qualification results will determine which countries qualify for the Team Final (top eight), as well as which individual gymnasts will compete in the All-Around (top 24) and Apparatus Finals (top eight per apparatus), with a maximum of two per country.
The Australian Team will begin their competition on Floor at 5:10am AEST (Monday 29 July).
Zoe Lorenzin
