China prevailed as gymnastics’ American Cup debuted a mixed-gender team competition, two years before an Olympic mixed team event is held for the first time.
In the final round, China totaled 57.25 points from its four gymnasts’ scores, beating the runner-up U.S. by 2.55 points.
Japan, led by Tokyo Olympic all-around gold medalist Daiki Hashimoto, was third with 54.1 points on Saturday in Henderson, Nevada.
In the final round, China tallied scores from Li Hongyan on high bar (14.8), Xie Chenyi on parallel bars (14.45), Tian Zhoufan on uneven bars (14.45) and world champion Zhang Qingying on balance beam (13.55).
AMERICAN CUP: Full Results
The U.S. lineup in the final round was Olympic team bronze medalist Asher Hong on floor exercise (14.1), Claire Pease on uneven bars (13.85), Olympic team gold medalist Hezly Rivera on floor (13.6) and Danila Leykin on high bar (13.15).
“It’s all about the final round, so getting to the final round was nice,” Hong said. “Just showing off our gymnastics in that final round was great. Seeing this come to life in the Olympic Games in 2028 is going to be really fun.”
The format was three rounds of competition, starting with eight teams of two men and two women per country. The field was cut to six teams for the second round and then four teams for the third and final round (China, the U.S., Japan and Spain).
In each round, each nation competed four routines (two men and two women). A gymnast could not repeat an apparatus in multiple rounds. Scores reset after each round.
The Olympic mixed-gender team event format has not been announced yet.
The next top-level USA Gymnastics meet is the U.S. Classic on the July 17-18 weekend in Hartford, Connecticut.
Gymnasts often use the Classic as a tune-up for the U.S. Championships, which are Aug. 6-9 in Phoenix.
