Zhou Yaqin

Chinese artistic gymnast

Zhou Yaqin
周雅琴
Zhou Yaqin performing a beam routine
Personal information
Full nameZhou Yaqin
Country represented China
Born (2005-11-12) 12 November 2005 (age 18)
Hunan, China
ClubHunan Province
Head coach(es)Jiang Suchun, Wang Liming
Medal record
Representing  China
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2023 Antwerp Balance beam

Zhou Yaqin (born 12 November 2005)[1] is a Chinese artistic gymnast. She is the 2023 World balance beam silver medalist.

Career

Zhou began gymnastics in Hengyang when she was three years old.[2]

Junior

Zhou competed with the Hunan provincial team at the 2019 Chinese Championships where they finished sixth.[3] Then at the China National Youth Games, she finished 14th in the all-around.[4] She then finished 13th in the all-around at the 2019 Chinese Individual Championships.[5] She made her international debut at the 2019 Olympic Hopes Cup in Liberec, Czech Republic where the Chinese team won the gold medal. Individually, she finished seventh in the all-around and eighth in the floor exercise final.[6] At the 2020 Chinese Championships, Zhou finished 17th in the all-around.[7] Then at the Chinese Individual Championships, she won the gold medal on the balance beam with a score of 15.066.[8]

Senior

Zhou became age-eligible for senior international competitions in 2021. At the 2021 Chinese Championships, she finished 23rd in the all-around qualification round and sixth with the Hunan provincial team.[9] Then at the 2021 National Games of China, she won the gold medal on the balance beam with a score of 14.660.[10] She finished fourth on the balance beam at the 2022 Chinese Championships.[11]

At the 2023 Chinese Championships, Zhou won the gold medal on the floor exercise [12] She made her senior international debut at the 2023 World Championships in Antwerp. The Chinese team consisted of Ou Yushan, Qiu Qiyuan, Zhang Qingying, Huang Zhuofan, and alternate Wu Ran, and they placed fourth in the team final.[13] Individually, she qualified for the balance beam and floor exercise finals. In the balance beam final, she won the silver medal behind Simone Biles.[14] She finished only 0.100 behind Biles, which was the smallest margin of victory for Biles in a World final since 2014.[15] She then finished seventh in the floor exercise final.[16]

Competitive history

Year Event Team AA VT UB BB FX
Junior
2019 Chinese Championships 6 33
China National Youth Games 14
Chinese Individual Championships 13
Olympic Hopes Cup 1st place, gold medalist(s) 7 8
2020 Chinese Championships 7 17
Chinese Individual Championships 1st place, gold medalist(s)
Senior
2021 Chinese Championships 6 23
National Games of China 7 1st place, gold medalist(s)
2022 Chinese Championships 8 4
2023 Chinese Championships 5 7 1st place, gold medalist(s)
World Championships 4 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 7
2024 Cottbus World Cup 1st place, gold medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s)
DTB Pokal Team Challenge 1st place, gold medalist(s) 5

References

  1. ^ "52nd FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships Antwerp (BEL), 30 September - 8 October 2023 Women Entry List by NOC" (PDF). USA Gymnastics. International Gymnastics Federation. 29 September 2023. p. 171. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  2. ^ "Zhou Yaqin". International Gymnastics Federation. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  3. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (16 May 2019). "2019 Chinese Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  4. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (7 August 2019). "2019 Chinese National Youth Games Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  5. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (8 September 2019). "2019 Chinese Individual Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  6. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (1 December 2019). "2019 Olympic Hopes Cup Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  7. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (29 September 2020). "2020 Chinese Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  8. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (27 October 2020). "2020 Chinese Senior Individual Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  9. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (15 May 2021). "2021 Chinese Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  10. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (26 September 2021). "2021 Chinese National Games Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  11. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (10 September 2022). "2022 Chinese Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  12. ^ Hopkins, Lauren. "2023 Chinese Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 8 October 2023.
  13. ^ "52nd FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships Antwerp (BEL), 30 September - 8 October 2023 Women's Team Final" (PDF). USA Gymnastics. International Gymnastics Federation. 4 October 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  14. ^ Petrequin, Samuel (8 October 2023). "Make it 23 titles: Unstoppable Biles wraps up world championships comeback with 2 more gold medals". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  15. ^ "Calm amidst a storm of attention, Biles sails smoothly to two more World golds". International Gymnastics Federation. 8 October 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  16. ^ "52nd FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships Antwerp (BEL), 30 September - 8 October 2023 Women's Floor Exercise Final" (PDF). USA Gymnastics. International Gymnastics Federation. 8 October 2023. p. 4. Retrieved 10 October 2023.