- Noe Seifert (8th) is the first Swiss to make it into the top 10 in the all-around competition at an Artistic Gymnastics World Championships since the 1950s.
- Victory in Antwerp (BEL) goes to top favorite and defending champion Daiki Hashimoto (JPN)
- Ilja Kowtun (UKR) and Frederick Richard (USA) complete the podium.
In the end it was a historic evening from a Swiss perspective at the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Antwerp. After a veritable improvement run, Noe Seifert took a sensational 8th place in the all-around final – higher than any Swiss since the double victory by Walter Lehmann and Marcel Adatte in 1950.
On parallel bars among the world elite
The 24-year-old earned the classification with an almost flawless performance and moved from his initial 17th place into the top 10. He particularly impressed the audience on the vault (14.100 points) and with his parallel bars exercise, where he received 14.766 points. When he fell on the high bar, Seifert gave him an even better classification. In the end, the man from Aargau also benefited from the fact that the competition made a mistake on the last device. So Seifert gained 5 places in the last rotation.
Florian Langenegger, the second Swiss, also took the spotlight at the start. The 20-year-old, who was taking part in a World Cup for the first time, placed 14th with 80.931 points. Without Seifert’s exploit, it would have dominated the Swiss headlines.
Together with Christian Baumann, Luca Giubellini, Taha Serhani and Dominic Tamsel, there was a special moment for the Swiss duo at the end of the evening: the sextet received the Infinity Award for their “special spirit and technical precision” in the team final on Tuesday.
Nobody can hold a candle to Hashimoto
Olympic champion and defending champion Daiki Hashimoto secured victory with 86.132 points. The 22-year-old, who only became the third-best Japanese in the qualification through a trick, ultimately came out on top by more than a point ahead of Ilja Kowtun (84.998) and Frederick Richard (84.332). The American had to fear for his medal until the end when he fell on the final horizontal bar.
From Hashimoto’s point of view, the competition didn’t start well: after an incorrect performance on the floor, like Seifert, he had to try to catch up. Like the Swiss, his venture was a success.
Two athletes who landed next to the podium also created lasting images. While Jake Jarman (GBR) mastered a very difficult jump without the slightest wobble, Ahmet Önder had pity on his side. The Turk made mistake after mistake on the pommel horse, but managed to finish his exercise.