Guo Weiyang and Sui Lu surpassed qualification leaders Teng Haibin and Jiang Yuyuan to win the Chinese Championships Saturday in Hunan province.
Guo, who has been on China's B-team for the past few years, topped newcomer Liao Qiuhua, who took second, as well as Tong Yingjie and Lu Bo, who tied for third.
Sui, the reigning World bronze medalist on floor exercise, debuted a new routine on that event and overtook Jiang during the last rotation. Jiang, one of the super six who took Olympic gold in Beijing, sat out most of 2009 with injuries but has recently returned to her top form. Huang Qiushaung was third.
China has recently been in the press for not seeming to have the all-around presence it did in 2008, when Yang Wei, Jiang and Yang Yilin were all strong podium contenders. Guo's 90.45, which would have won him silver in the all-around at the 2009 World Championships, does signal his emergence as a medal threat for the 2010 Worlds.
In spite of her gold medal winning performance, Sui's 56.9 in the all-around is not likely to be enough to challenge for a medal at the World Championships. Sui's main weakness is vault, an event that kept many Chinese gymnasts from contending for all-around titles during the 1990s and early 2000s.
Teng, the Olympic champion on pommel horse from the 2004 Olympics, has not competed outside China in several years. Although he looked strong on the first day of competition, Teng ended his all-around competition in 12th place after numerous errors on day two. Chinese coaches have been talking to the press about the dearth in all-around competitors from China during the past few years.
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