Marfa Ekimova will be Great Britain’s sole representative at the 2022 FIG Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships, a Paris 2024 qualifier, British Gymnastics has announced.
The event, to be held in Sofia, Bulgaria’s Armeets Arena, home of the Bulgarian volleyball team and the Sofia Open ATP 250 tennis tournament, will now see some of the best rhythmic gymnasts face off. With three spots each in the individual and group competitions, it will be very unlikely for us to qualify a spot here (and unlikely to do so at all). The next chance the groups will get is the 2023 World Championships, should we choose to enter a group in that competition.
Rhythmic gymnastics has not been our strong suit at all, with our recent gymnastics revival being nearly solely in artistic gymnastics, and the few exceptions have been on the trampoline. That said, 17-year-old Ekimova will probably be the most famous British rhythmic gymnast of them all after winning gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games for England. In a field of sixty-two including European champions and seasoned veterans, it would be unfair to single her out, but it will be a big experience for her, and it is good to see a British rhythmic gymnast thriving. In her World Championships debut last year in Kitakyushu, Japan, the West Londoner, who was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia, came 44th in qualifying, not advancing to the final round, which will probably be a bit of a stretch this time as well. Qualifying is on 14 August, with the final on 17 August. In total, eighty-two athletes from sixty-one countries will compete. It is unclear where TV coverage will be, but the Olympic website suggests the Olympic Channel in “some areas”, and the FIG’s YouTube channel in others. It’s not on the BBC, and it’s not on Eurosport, meaning that one of the two will probably work.
Ekimova said: “My goal for the competition is to perform my routines the best that I can, and to enjoy the experience as a whole. Competing at such a high-level competition against the world’s best gymnasts is absolutely amazing and I just want to do my maximum.” She can perform without pressure: noone expects fireworks, simply doing her best and giving a good account of herself will do: British fans know how good she is, the world can’t be too far behind.
GB Games 