(By International Federation of Gymnastics)

Take a quick look at the list of registered gymnasts and you'll see that Melbourne is setting everyone's sights on the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. The majority of medallists from Athens are sure to be there, along with a host of new faces and new names, among whom will emerge the stars of tomorrow.

Generations go by! As does the Code of Points, whose 2001 - 2005 version will be used for the last time in Melbourne. You'll hear more about that later!

The championships in Melbourne are reserved for All-arounders and specialists. No Team Competition. For those who remember, Melbourne maintains the same format as Brisbane 1994! And far from being an Australian speciality, this type of competition is in keeping with the Technical Regulations for the current Olympic Cycle.

As far as the Regulations go, let's not forget that these championships are going to be a real display of fireworks, in which the gymnasts will participate without the pressure of the Olympic Games! Because next year, at the worlds in Aarhus, Denmark, it'll be a different story entirely! Why, you might ask? Go back and have another look at the Technical Regulations, article 5.2, and start at the end.

If a gymnast wishes to participate in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, he or his team must qualify at the 2007 worlds in Stuttgart. And to participate in the championships in Stuttgart, he's got to ... qualify at the 2006 worlds in Aarhus!

Thus, here in Melbourne, there'll be no thinking ahead to the Olympic Games! The medals are for the King or the Queen of gymnastics and the apparatus specialities.

Participation

In Women's, we have 108 gymnasts, representing 41 national federations. In Men's, there are 191 from 53!

The statistics are showing an increase in the average participating age: 18.2 for women and 23.1 for men. The senior gymnasts in the circuit are Norwegian Espen Jansen, 37 years, and Uzbek Oxana Chusovitina, who turned 30 on June 19th! A few famous names have left the circuit: Khorkina, Chechi, Nemov, Hamm, Slater and Patterson.

Our Selection

With our eyes fixed on the podium for the Men's Individual All-around Competition, a certain Korean gymnast named, Yang Tae Young, Bronze medallist at the Olympic Games in Athens, will be there. We're thinking about the events that marked that competition, creating endless shock waves. Young and his compatriot Kim Dae Eun, Silver medallist in Athens, are the favourites. Other popular figures are Japanese Tomita and Yamada, Romanian Dragulescu and Russian Bondarenko. In Women's we're casting our vote for Chinese Zhang Nan, Russian Pavlova, French gymnast Marine Debauve and Brazilian Camila Comin. The Women's Competition is particularly open and it looks as if anything is possible.

The choice is a bit more difficult among the specialists. The stars from the recent Olympic Games will be present, for the most part, having earned their fame at the World Cup events in Stuttgart, Glasgow and Maribor. We can't go without mentioning locals Philippe Rizzo and Monette Russo, who surely won't miss their chance to make a name for themselves: first at the Bar, second on Vault.

Link: 2005 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships