World champion Russia proved its dominance in rhythmic
gymnastics as it led the group qualifications after the rope
rotation at the Olympic test event on Wednesday.
With Russia and Italy being pitted against each other in the
group competition, the "Good Luck Beijing" Rhythmic Gymnastics
International Invitational is viewed as a pre-Olympic rehearsal
between the world's best two teams.
The Russian team, winner of the 2007 World Championships and the
last two Olympics, remained formidable when it scored 17.500 points
in the rope exercise, with a difficulty valued 8.600, the highest
among the competitors.
Italy, second place in Athens and the 2007 World Championships,
started with a 7.70 difficulty value and finished second.
The Belarus team, silver medalist in Sydney Olympics and bronze
winner in the 2007 worlds, trailed in third place with 16.700
points.
Host China, who is still looking for its first rhythmic
gymnastics international medal, finished fourth.
The rhythmic gymnastics international invitational, though only
a test event for the upcoming Beijing Olympics, is still a
competition of high standard, with big names such as world champion
Anna Bessonova and Olga Kapranova setting the bar high.
In the qualifications, ten groups perform two exercises, one
with 5 ropes and the other with 3 hoops and 2 clubs. The best eight
groups in both exercises will compete in the final.
(Xinhua News Agency December 6, 2007)