Outstanding performances show true colours of Acrobatics

Highlights of #ACRO2017 in Rzeszow (POL)

The Polish Gymnastics Federation hosted both the European Age Group competitions and the European Championships for juniors and seniors, in two consecutive weeks, in Rzeszow’s Hala Podpromie. Many great performances highlighted these events, just have a look at our top 7. In no particular order, as usual!

The supremacy of Marina Chernova and Georgiy Pataraya

The style, the class, the difficulty, the superb execution … nothing comes close to the divine performances of Russia’s stars Marina Chernova and Georgiy Pataraya. Since they started competing together, this fabulous pair have won everything there is to win in acro, starting with triple gold at the inaugural European Games in 2015, followed by three European titles later that year, the World title in 2016 and the World Games in July. From the moment they stepped onto the carpet in Rzeszow, it was obvious we were in for another treat. Over 4 days of competition, every routine scored over 30 points, culminating in a massive 31.060 for the final routine in the balance final. There really is no stopping them!

Israel’s second triple crown

Efi Sach, Lidar Dana, Yannay Kalfa and Daniel Uralevitch are well-known names in the acrobatic community since their triple victory at the 2015 European Championships in Riesa (GER). In Rzeszow, they debuted a superb new balance routine to the tune of ‘Ready or not’ that gave the audience goose bumps. These amazing men were rewarded with the highest artistry score of the competition, a whopping 9.550! Going into the all-around final 0.030 behind 2015 junior Champions Adam Upcott, Lewis Watts, Charlie Tate and Conor Sawenko, the Israeli’s produced another fabulous routine to clinch their second gold medal. On the final day, they added a third gold medal, for their dynamic exercise, joining Chernova and Pataraya as the only repeat triple Champions!

Portugal’s talented trio

Forming a trio for just a year didn’t stop the talented Portuguese ladies Joana Moreira, Rita Ferreira and Beatriz Carneiro from owning this competition. On day 1 they tied Russia for the first place in the dynamic final but since this year ties are not allowed anymore. The execution score determined the winners and gave the Portuguese ladies their first title: “It’s the first gold medal for us as a trio. We are happy but now we need to focus on our other routines. The Portuguese fans in the hall help us, they are amazing.” Going into the all-around final, just 0.150 separated Portugal from Russia, making it a nervous wait for both teams as Portugal’s score was projected on the big screen. 28.400 compared to Russia’s 27.850 brought the Portuguese audience on their feet as they celebrated the second European title for this fantastic trio. Their third gold medal they won for their balance routine with a margin of 6 tenths over Ukraine.

Double Darya’s

The two Darya’s, Darya Kalinina and Darya Guryeva, are rapidly on their way to join the ‘unbeatable’ rank of their teammates Chernova and Pataraya. While two years ago they lost the third available gold to Belarussians Marharyta Bartashevich and Viktoria Michnovich in the balance final, this year they didn’t let anyone come even remotely close. Showing off confidence and difficulty, this incredible women’s pair cruised to victory over Belgium’s Noémie Lammertyn and Lore Vanden Berghe who claimed three silver medals and Israeli’s Mika Lefkovits and Romi Surzon, triple bronze medallists.

Belgium’s art

The choreographies designed by Irina Shadrina have been noticed worldwide, and have grown into a true form of art, making the performances of the Belgian national team such a delight to watch. From Michael Jackson over Harry Potter, take a few minutes to sit back and enjoy these routines!

Succession guaranteed

The level in the European Age Group competitions was impressive and with 24 federations participating, the future looks bright for Acrobatic Gymnastics. In April 2018, the World Age Group Competitions and the World Championships will be held in Antwerp (BEL) while the next European meet are the European Games in Minsk (BLR) in June 2019 followed by the European Age Group Competitions and European Championships in Holon (ISR) in October 2019. We hope to see many familiar faces at these competitions!

Medal table

It was a true pleasure to see so many countries represented in the podium! In the Age Groups 8 countries returned home with medals while for the juniors and seniors this number increased to 10. So many talented gymnasts from a wide variety of countries is essential for the promotion of acrobatics worldwide!

European Age Group Competitions

Country	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Russia	4	4	-	8
Great Britain	4	3	1	8
Israel	1	-	2	3
Portugal	-	1	3	4
Belarus	1	-	2	3
Belgium	-	-	1	1
France	-	-	1	1
Ukraine	-	-	1	1

 

European Championships for junior and seniors

Country	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Russia	15	7	1	23
Belgium	3	6	-	9
Israel	3	-	3	6
Portugal	3	-	2	5
Ukraine	2	1	4	7
Great Britain	1	9	6	16
Belarus	-	4	6	10
Azerbaijan	-	-	3	3
France	-	-	1	1
Germany	-	-	1	1