Donnell Whittenburg can finally call himself a world champion.
Whittenburg, a two-time Olympic alternate who tore an Achilles in September 2024, became the first American to win a world gymnastics title on still rings.
He became the third American to win a medal across Friday’s five events in Jakarta, Indonesia, after Joscelyn Roberson (vault bronze) and Patrick Hoopes (pommel horse bronze).
Whittenburg scored 14.7 points for his rings routine that included the “Whittenburg” dismount: a triple pike back somersault. It’s named after him because Whittenburg became the first gymnast to perform it internationally in 2017.
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That dismount helped Whittenburg win over a field that included 2022 World champion Adem Asil of Turkiye (silver, 14.566), 2021 World champion Lan Xingyu of China (bronze, 14.5) and three-time world champion Eleftherios Petrounias of Greece (fifth, 14.3).
Whittenburg, 31, is the oldest American to compete at a gymnastics worlds in at least 35 years. It’s his sixth World Championships appearance, tying Simone Biles’ American record.
Whittenburg previously won world bronze medals in 2014 (team) and 2015 (vault), then came shy of making Olympic teams in 2016, 2021 and 2024.
If he makes the Los Angeles 2028 team, he will be the oldest U.S. Olympic gymnast since 1952, according to the OlyMADMen.
“I knew that my body was still good to do gymnastics, but it all started up here (in my head),” Whittenburg told GymCastic. “How bad do I still want to go for that dream? I knew that if my body’s still good, why not keep pushing for it?”
Roberson, a 2024 Olympic alternate, overcame recent back and ankle injuries to earn her first individual world medal Friday. She eked into the final in the eighth and last qualifying spot.
She upgraded one vault difficulty from qualifying to jump onto the podium with a 13.983 average for her two vaults, edging Belgian Lisa Vaelen by .117 for bronze.
Angelina Melnikova, the world all-around champion from Russia, took gold (14.466), followed by 16-year-old Canadian Lia-Monica Fontaine (14.033).
Hoopes claimed pommel horse bronze in his worlds debut, one year after Stephen Nedoroscik won bronze in the event at the Olympics.
Hoopes, a two-time NCAA horse champion for Air Force, outscored Nedoroscik at the 2024 Olympic Trials, but it was not enough to get him on the Paris team. Nedoroscik did not make this year’s world team after taking nine months off from the sport after the Games.
Hong Yanming of China took horse gold in a tiebreaker over Mamikon Khachatryan of Armenia. Both scored 14.6. Hoopes came in just behind at 14.566.
The other event winners Friday included Algerian Kaylia Nemour, the Paris Olympic gold medalist who won the uneven bars by a dominant 1.066 points in Jakarta. American Skye Blakely was fourth, her best individual world finish ever.
Brits Jake Jarman and Luke Whitehouse went one-two on floor exercise. American Kameron Nelson was fourth in his first worlds, four tenths behind bronze medalist Carlos Yulo, the Olympic gold medalist from the Philippines.
Gymnastics worlds conclude Saturday at 3 a.m. ET on Peacock with the last five apparatus finals — women’s balance beam and floor exercise and men’s vault, parallel bars and high bar.
