Awhile back, I made a list of 21 women to watch this year. Before the men's season kicks off later this year, I wanted to be sure to post the men's list.
So without further ado...
Ruslan Panteleymonov, GBR: His World Championships moment was 10 years in the making. The 27-year-old came to Great Britain to study English and work as a coach. Although he had competed in one junior international tournament representing Ukraine, he harbored no dreams of Olympic glory. His first foray into competition after receiving a British passport was marred by an ankle injury after six months.
So to find himself in Rotterdam and having a hell of a meet seemed to shock him as much as anyone else. "I never thought this day would come," he told me after his performance in team prelims. Not to mention that he very nearly captured the British title from Sam Hunter and Daniel Purvis a month later.
Want to see something cool? Check out this pass of his from the 2008 London Open here.
Cyril Tommassone, FRA: A pommel horse specialist who's not just a pommel horse specialist, Tommassone stepped up nicely for his team after injury sidelined Benoit Caranobe at the Rotterdam Worlds. That and of the men who competed in the unofficial all-around competition at the European Championships last April, Tommassone was no. 2 after prelims. Check out his pommel set from the 2010 French International here.
Oleg Stepko, UKR: Just wait. This kid, who took in a fistful of medals at the Youth Olympic Games (yet still looked disappointed by some of his performances) will be a World or Olympic champion (or both!) one day. Just look at the elegance he displayed on floor at the Youth Olympic Games last summer here.
Daniel Keatings, GBR: Keatings had a great start to 2010, winning pommel horse at the European Championships and helping his team win a historic silver medal. Days later, his season was over after he tore his ACL shortly after returning from Birmingham.
The good news for himself and for Britain is that he has worked studiously for the past year (and kept a diary of his experiences, which can be found here) to rehab, get his knee back to normal and up his difficulty on the non-leg events, including rings, which was never his best piece.
So the future again looks bright for Keatings as the London Olympic year approaches -- he's only 21, and the Olympics will be in his country come 2012. Check out his high bar routine from last year's American Cup here.
Sam Oldham, GBR: The junior European all-around champion is poised to make a major move to the senior ranks this season. He could be the next Daniel Keatings. His parallel bars routine from the 2010 Youth Olympic Games can be found here.
Jonathan Horton, USA: The 2008 Olympic silver medalist has continued to achieve his dreams. While Horton accomplished a major goal at the 2010 Worlds -- medaling in the all-around and greatly improving on pommel horse -- he has always been candid that challenging (and hopefully beating) the very best is what he's after. Hear that, Kohei? (Check out Horton's high bar routine from the 2010 U.S. Championships here.)
Jake Dalton, USA: A talented kid from Nevada who stands out for his clean form and uber-difficult skills. Dalton is one of the best vault/floor guys in a country of especially strong vault/floor guys, and he proved it by winning Winter Cup. Here's the floor routine that everyone is talking about.
Kohei Uchimura, JPN: The World all-around champion is the man to beat. In spite of shoulder pain, he appeared superhuman at the 2010 World Championships. Unless his injury gets worse or he comes down with a new one, only great things are expected of him this year. So far, he's only gotten better -- lest you've forgotten, here's his triple-twisting Yurchenko from the Japanese Championships in December.
Teng Haibin, CHN: The 2004 Olympic pommel horse champion didn't compete outside China for six years after his golden performance in Athens. But Teng Haibin hasn't gone away, and now, at age 25, the Asian Games champion appears to be one of China's best all-around contenders in the post-Yang Wei era. Here he is on high bar at the 2010 Asian Games.
Chen Yibing, CHN: China's golden ringman hasn't changed. New quad, same dominance. He is the favorite to win every competition he enters. The rumor is that he's been training all-around, hoping to fill China's void in that category. Check out Chen's exhibition of his best event last year in Hong Kong here.
Yuri van Gelder, NED: Was he doing cocaine before the 2010 World Championships? Whatever the truth, the Dutch Gymnastics Federation has expressed interest in giving the 2005 World rings champion a second second chance, likely because his team needs him badly if they are going to make a run for qualifying for the 2012 Olympics. Van Gelder's presence alone on his best apparatus is likely to bolster the Dutch score by about 2.5 points. He proved back in September that he still has a lot of ability on rings. But can he handle the pressure of competition? Have a look at his winning routine from the 2010 Ghent World Cup here.
Philipp Boy, GER: The surprise star of the German team at the World Championships had a breakthrough in Rotterdam after several years of struggling and standing in the shadow of Fabian Hambuechen. The question for him this year will be whether he can continue to reign over German gymnastics in the face of challenges from Nguyen, Boy, Sebastian Krimmer and others. Have a look at Boy's high bar set from the 2010 Cottbus World Cup here.
Marcel Nguyen, GER: Germany's young trickster is a skinny kid with a fauxhawk capable of a triple-double on floor. He was also probably working a bevy of hair-raising skills in the gym when he broke his leg in tumbling in September. But Nguyen is also young, and reportedly already set to make a splash in Berlin at the European Championships this spring. Check out his routines from the 2010 Japan Cup here.
Fabian Hambuechen, GER: Achilles pain kept him from showing his best stuff in competition in 2010. But now that he's actually gone and torn the tendon, he has time to truly let it heal. In theory, anyway. But previous results have shown that you the 23-year-old can never be counted out. Don't expect him back in competition until Worlds at the earliest, however. Here's Hambuechen on his best event, high bar, at the 2010 German Nationals.
Paul Hamm, USA: The 2004 Olympic champion's second comeback attempt has been stalled by a torn labrum in his shoulder. But Hamm should be ready to show something by the end of the year. Even if he misses Worlds, he's going to be worth the wait. Just to remind you, see Hamm on high bar at the 2008 American Cup here.
Feng Zhe, CHN: The World parallel bars champion has a lot to give on almost every event. He's one of China's most dazzling gymnasts on a team of exceptional players. Check out his p-bar skills from the 2010 Xiantao Championship here.
Denis Ablyuzin, RUS: A solid cleanup player for Russia who is useful on several of the non-glamour events, like rings. Ablyuzin made an impact at post-Worlds World Cup meets in 2010, establishing his name and bringing medals home to Russia.
David Belyavskiy, RUS: A Russian star in the making. Belyavskiy is more Liukin than Nemov, meaning that his difficulty is more acute than his finesse. But he is certainly being groomed as a leader of future Russian teams. In the present he is strong and getting stronger. Have a look at this routine, from the 2009 European Youth Olympic Festival, where Belyavskiy first made waves, but know that he's added a heck of a lot more difficulty since then.
Daniel Purvis, GBR: His superclean form (and bright red hair) set him apart from the masses on floor and vault. In European and World Cup competition in 2010, Purvis very often snuck into the top three ahead of better-known names. Expect more of the same this season. Here he is showing off that difficulty and cleanliness at the 2010 Glasgow Grand Prix.
Ali Al Asi, JOR: I've said this before, and I'll say it again -- although Ali Al Asi's specialty is rings and he often makes World Cup finals on the event, he is seriously underestimated on both floor and vault. The Best Arab Athlete of 2010 is a great gymnast, and has even more potential than he's given credit for. Check out his floor routine from 2010 Gymnix here. Great potential, no?
Epke Zonderland, NED: The only thing better than winning a World high bar title is almost winning a World high bar title. Zonderland was a hero in his country after October and should continue to challenge for hardware on high bar and possibly parallel bars at the European and World Championships this year. Have a look at what he did on high bar at the 2010 Cottbus World Cup here.
Honorable mention: Yin Alvarez, USA. Danell Leyva's coach/stepfather can't do the flips and twists his son is capable of, but he does rival the talented Leyva when it comes to commanding attention for his performances on and off the podium. Check out a photo gallery of the many expressions of Yin by clicking his image off to the left, or here.
2011 is going to be an exciting year.
Your take: Who's on your list of gymnasts to watch for 2011? Please leave a comment below!
Comments
Paul Ruggeri
You mention Dalton - i think it's going to be interesting to watch as Ruggeri/Brooks/Legendre/Dalton vie for spots on the Worlds team. Dalton looks primed to have that breakout year, and Ruggeri's recovery from the ankle surgery puts a question mark in it ... but you know that all of them are going to be pushing the DD to try to position for 2012.
I just wish Durante would come back! He looks like he's still in fighting trim ...
Team: The top teams of MAG now is China And Japan.
AA: Kohei- no one can defeat him except injury
Rings: Chen YiBin
HB: Horton, Zhang Cheng Long,
PB: Feng Zhe
PH: depends on if China's Xiao Qin will be back
FX and Vault, complicated
interesting to watch:
Team: GBR
AA: Kohei Uchimura
FX: Marcel Nguyen
PH: Zhang Hongtao
SR: Van Gelder
VT: Kohei Uchimura (will he do two vaults?)
PB: Feng Zhe
HB: Epke Zonderland
I thought Uchimura wasnt competing this year?
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