The China Mail - Gymnastics apparatus finals - day two

AFP Sport previews the day's three finals at Bercy Arena:

Rings

France's Samir Ait Said would be a hugely popular presence on the podium. The 34-year-old's steely grit and determination in returning to this level of competition after a horror leg break at Rio 2016 has captured hearts.

The hopes of a nation are resting on his shoulders as he represents France's only chance of a gymnastics medal. Finishing fourth at the Tokyo Games, Ait Said came third in qualifying behind Chinese duo Zou Jingyuan and Liu Yang, the defending Olympic champion.

He said: "I want this medal. I was fourth in Tokyo. That was very difficult for me. My father passed away after Rio and I made him a promise to get this medal."

Uneven bars

Algerian teenager Kaylia Nemour is aiming to become the first African to win an Olympic gymnastics medal. She swings into action on uneven bars after placing fifth in the all-around.

The 17-year-old French-born athlete switched to compete for her father's country Algeria after the French federation blocked her from competing on medical grounds after a dispute.

She took silver at last year's world championships in Antwerp and earned an impressive 15.600 points in qualifying to surpass her 15.033 at the worlds.

American great Simone Biles failed to qualify for the uneven bars final.

China's Qiu Qiyuan, 17, who beat Nemour to gold at the 2023 worlds, was second with a score of 15.066 points.

American Sunisa Lee was third ahead of defending Olympic champion Nina Derwael of Belgium, a former two-time world champion, after returning from surgery.

"Just to be here and have this accreditation around my neck feels the same as the medal I won in Tokyo. This is really an extra to me," said Derwael.

"It's going to be close to impossible to retain the title if other people do their job. There are many more capable girls. For example, Kaylia has such a great routine with such a high D (difficulty) score. If she hits, there's no way I'm getting close.

Men's vault

Britain's Jake Jarman, fresh from taking floor bronze on Saturday, has his sights firmly set on adding Olympic gold to his world title at Antwerp last year.

Among those up against him are 2022 world champion Artur Davtyan of Armenia, Ukraine's top qualifier Nazar Chepurnyi, and his own teammate Harry Hepworth.

To see off the opposition he will need to produce 'the Jarman' -- his eponymous skill - a double layout with 3.5 twists -- he nailed it at the Paris World Cup in 2023 and was forever immortalised in the gymnastics code of points.

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