The 8th World Cup Final in trampoline and tumbling will take place on November 8, 2006, at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, Great Britain.     

You will find below a comprehensive preview of each of the 6 events of the World Cup Final: men's individual trampoline, women's individual trampoline, men's synchronized trampoline, women's synchronized trampoline, men's tumbling, and women's tumbling.  This preview analyzes the respective chances of each finalist.

The top 8 athletes in the FIG rankings qualified for the World Cup Final.  If an athlete withdraws, is injured, or has retired, the next one in the ranking takes the qualifying spot.  The FIG rankings are established based not only on the performances at the various World Cups of the bi-annual World Cup series, but also on the other major international events.  The top 8 athletes at the Olympic Games or World Games received from 150 to 30 points, at the World Championships from 125 to 20, at the World Cup Finals from 100 to 10, at category A World Cups from 50 to 3, at category B World Cups from 30 to 2.  10 to 3 points are also granted to the top 3 athletes at national championships.  No points are granted based on the results at continental championships.  The points of the previous years are discounted by 30% at each January 1st.  Since the points from competitions other than the World Cups are taken into account to determine which athletes compete at the World Cup Final, the format of the competition is a little more similar to the format of a "masters" competition than a "final."

You will find below the names of the athletes, their first names, their nationality, their age at year-end 2006, their FIG ranking, as well as their results at the World Cups held in the 2005-2006 World Cup circuit.  The 2005-2006 World Cup series included 8 stages: Sofia (Bulgaria) in June 2005, Levallois (France) in June 2005, Krasnodar (Russia) in July 2005, Ostend (Belgium) in August 2005, Ghent (Belgium) in April 2006, Krasnodar (Russia) in May 2006, Savognin (Switzerland) in August 2006, and Salzgitter (Germany) in September 2006.  The Savognin World Cup did not feature a tumbling competition.  The Ostend, Ghent and Savognin World Cups were category A World Cups.  The five other World Cups were category B World Cups.

The order in which the athletes are presented below is based on their order on the World Cup start list.  The athletes will compete in the reverse order of merit, which is expected to the reverse order of the FIG ranking.  

At the World Cup Final, each athlete competes only one optional routine.

Please note that due to financial reasons, AcrobaticSports.com will not be able to provide onsite coverage of the event.  British Gymnastics has also stated that cameras and video recorders will not be allowed in the arena.

The World Cup Final will be broadcasted in the U.K. on the channel BBC Two at 1.05 pm on Sunday 26, 2006.  The color commentator will be Andrea Holmes (GBR), the 3-time European Champion, 4-time World silver medalist, and 2-time World Cup Final winner. 

1. SOTOMURA Tetsuya (JPN) - 22 - FIG ranking: 8
2005-2006 World Cups:
- 13th at the 2006 Salzgitter World Cup
- 15th at the 2006 Savognin World Cup
- 36th at the 2006 Ghent World Cup
- 4th at the 2005 Ostend World Cup
- 6th at the 2005 Krasnodar World Cup
- 4th at the 2005 Levallois World Cup
- 13th at the 2005 Sofia World Cup

2005 World bronze medalist Tetsuya Sotomura has been struggling all year with lost skills.  As a result, his achievements in 2006 have not been on par with his talent.  Due to the loss of several skills, Sotomura was forced to compete a reduced tariff most of the year.  When Sotomura masters all his skills, he is one of the top trampolinists in the world, as witnessed by his bronze medal at the 2005 World Championships and his finals at three of the 2005 World Cups.  Although recovery from lost skills can have ups and downs, Sotomura showed at the 2006 Japanese Championships three weeks ago that he was back on track.  Sotomura was able to compete his traditional 15.50 pt tariff twice.  In the final, his execution was sterling as he performed the best routine of the whole competition (41.00 pts).  If Sotomura is able to deliver the same performance in Birmingham, a medal should be within his reach.   

2. QUE Zhicheng (CHN) - 21 - FIG ranking: 7
2005-2006 World Cups:
- 9th at the 2006 Salzgitter World Cup
- 3rd at the 2006 Savognin World Cup
- 2nd at the 2006 Krasnodar World Cup
- 8th at the 2006 Ghent World Cup
- 3rd at the 2005 Ostend World Cup
- 63rd at the 2005 Levallois World Cup
- 10th at the 2005 Sofia World Cup

Que Zhicheng has very serious chances to win a medal at this Birmingham World Cup Final.  Over the past two years, Que established himself among the very top performers in the world, and clearly the best Chinese trampolinist.  At the 2005 World Championships, Que took the 4th place, the best performance ever by a Chinese trampolinist.  He also led his national team to the World Champion title.  In the World Cup series, he proved his great consistency, qualifying for the final of almost every event despite often competing the most difficult routine.  Que Zhicheng obtained 3 medals over these series, including the silver medal at the 2006 Krasnodar World Cup, the best performance ever by a male Chinese trampolinist.  Que Zhicheng is currently in great shape as witnessed by his performances last week-end at the Chinese Championships where he triumphed with routines scoring around 41-42 points.  In Birmingham, Que Zhicheng will rely on his difficulty (16.70 pt tariff) to have an edge over his rivals.

3. KHNYCHEV German (RUS) - 33 - FIG ranking: 6
2005-2006 World Cups:
- 4th at the 2006 Savognin World Cup
- 6th at the 2006 Krasnodar World Cup
- 47th at the 2006 Ghent World Cup
- 1st at the 2005 Levallois World Cup
- 2nd at the 2005 Sofia World Cup

Veteran German Khnychev is still chasing after his dream to compete and medal at the Olympics.  In the meantime, he keeps performing at the top level and piling up medals at major events.  Khnychev has recovered from the back injury that prevented him from competing for a part of 2005.  The 1998 World Champion and 1998-2000 European Champion will have the advantage of his experience in Birmingham: he was the winner of the World Cup Final in 1999 and 2000.  His twisting skills still allow him to contend for a medal at every competition, as witnessed by his silver medal at the 2006 European Championships.  Khnychev was also the winner of the 2005 Levallois World Cup.  The champion from Krasnodar is currently in very good shape as witnessed by his gold medal at the Grand Prix - Neutromed Cup two weeks ago, and his silver medal at the Russian Championship last week.  

4. MARTIN David (FRA) - 29 - FIG ranking: 5
2005-2006 World Cups:
- 49th at the 2006 Ghent World Cup

David Martin did not compete much over the past two years.  The reason is that he recovered from an ankle surgery carried out in 2005.  His recovery has been progressive, but Martin is one of the most talented trampolinists in the world, as witnessed by his multiple achievements in the past.  Martin is the 1997 European Champion, the 2002 World Cup Final gold medalist, and a 2-time World bronze medalist (1999 and 2003).  He proved his talent once again by winning the bronze medal at the 2006 European Championships in Metz where he qualified for the final in 1st place.  Unfortunately, Martin suffered from a broken metacarpus bone right after these European Championships after being assaulted on the street.  Thankfully, Martin will be back to his top shape for the World Cup Final as witnessed by his great performance at the recent French team championship.  Therefore, he should be regarded as an potential challenger, who could surprise many thanks to his experience and ability to step in major events.

5. STEHLIK Henrik (GER) - 26 - FIG ranking: 4
2005-2006 World Cups:
- 3rd at the 2006 Salzgitter World Cup
- 4th at the 2006 Ghent World Cup
- 9th at the 2005 Krasnodar World Cup (4th after the preliminaries)
- 3rd at the 2005 Levallois World Cup
- 4th at the 2005 Sofia World Cup

Henrik Stehlik, the 2003 World Champion, is arguably the most consistent trampolinist in the world.  He almost never falls.  His style heavily relies on execution and a mastered difficulty that is slightly lower (15.60 pt tariff) than most of his rivals.  Over the past two years, the 2004 Olympic bronze medalist has been a regular within the top 3-4 of almost every competition, even though he did not obtain a gold medal at any of the major events since his World Champion title.  In Birmingham, Stehlik should be expected to finish again within the top 5.  He should also be regarded as a serious contender for a medal. 

6. NIKITIN Yuri (UKR) - 28 - FIG ranking: 3
2005-2006 World Cups:
- 2nd at the 2006 Salzgitter World Cup
- 49th at the 2006 Savognin World Cup

Do not be fooled by Yuri Nikitin's lack of results over the past two years.  Yuri Nikitin is definitely back now.  In 2004, Nikitin won the Olympic Games, the European Championships, and the World Cup Final.  He dominated the year like very few did in the past.  Since the 2004 World Cup Final, Nikitin had to battle multiple injuries (broken foot, sprained knee, broken toe).  However, he finally came back last summer.  He signed his come back with a silver medal at the Salzgitter World Cup.  Even though, in his own admission, he is not yet at 100%, he is getting closer to it every day.  Nikitin should be able to perform almost as his top level in Birmingham, as witnessed by his convincing gold medal with almost 41 pts at the Slavic Games Open last week.  Accordingly, Nikitin is likely to have a good shot at the gold medal in Birmingham.  Nikitin will rely on a combination of great execution, height, and good difficulty (16.20 pt tariff).   

7. RUSAKOV Alexander (RUS) - 26 - FIG ranking: 2
2005-2006 World Cups:
- 63rd at the 2006 Savognin World Cup
- 1st at the 2005 Ostend World Cup
- 32nd at the 2005 Krasnodar World Cup
- 8th at the 2005 Levallois World Cup
- 11th at the 2005 Sofia World Cup

The 2005 World Champion might be the most dangerous rival for FIG ranking leader Yasuhiro Ueyama.  He indeed beat Ueyama three times over the past 15 months, winning the gold three times and leaving three silver medals to Ueyama: at the 2005 World Championships, at the 2005 Ostend World Cup, and at the 2006 Pacific Alliance Championships.  Rusakov also won the 2006 European Championships.  Over the past couple of years, Rusakov seems to have been able to master his nerves in big finals and step up to the plate at major events.  When less interested, Rusakov is more inconsistent, as witnessed by his performances at some of the World Cups or at the Russian Championships last week.  However, Rusakov should be expected to bring his A game to Birmingham.  He took the silver medal at the 2004 World Cup Final and is likely eager to complete his collection of major gold medals by adding the World Cup Final gold medal to the ones from the 2005 World Championships and 2006 European Championships.  Rusakov will rely on solid difficulty (16.20 pt tariff) and a very seasoned routine that is generally clean and with little traveling.  

8. UEYAMA Yasuhiro (JPN) - 22 - FIG ranking: 1
2005-2006 World Cups:
- 1st at the 2006 Salzgitter World Cup
- 1st at the 2006 Savognin World Cup
- 1st at the 2006 Krasnodar World Cup
- 1st at the 2006 Ghent World Cup
- 2nd at the 2005 Ostend World Cup
- 4th at the 2005 Krasnodar World Cup
- 7th at the 2005 Levallois World Cup
- 1st at the 2005 Sofia World Cup

Yasuhiro Ueyama will be the clear favorite of this Birmingham World Cup Final.  Ueyama completely dominated the world circuit in 2006.  The 2005 World silver medalist won all four World Cups in 2006.  He became the first man to ever win four World Cups in a row.  The champion from Osaka was also the winner of the Sofia World Cup in 2005, the first World Cup ever won by a Japanese.  Ueyama relies on a perfect execution and a sharp technique to outperform his rivals.  However, Ueyama displayed in 2006 a new weapon: a 16.20 pt routine that allows him to step up his tariff from his traditional 15.50 pt routine.  As Ueyama will be the last to jump in Birmingham, he probably will have the luxury to choose his strategy based on the results of his main rivals.  However, due to the quality of his opponents in Birmingham, it would be surprising if Ueyama could simply compete his 15.50 pt routine instead of the 16.20 pt routine.   Ueyama is currently in great shape as witnessed by his convincing performance at the Japanese Championship three weeks ago where he won a new gold medal.

The main athletes who performed well on the 2005-2006 World Cup series circuit but nonetheless did not qualify for the World Cup Final include Adam Goetz (GER - 6 finals including one gold medal and two silver medals), Liu Qipeng (CHN - 5 finals, 7 top 10s, and one bronze medal), Jason Burnett (CAN - 4 finals, one bronze medal), Peter Jensen (DEN - 4 finals), and Flavio Cannone (ITA - two silver medals).

Below is the list of the medalists at the previous World Cup Finals

AcrobaticSports.com would like to thank Traci House, T&T coordinator at the Canadian Gymnastics Federation, for the rectification to the starting order.

Link to the Birmingham World Cup Final stats lists

Link to the Birmingham World Cup Final website

Link to the Birmingham World Cup Final Bulletin #2

Link to the Birmingham World Cup Final Bulletin #1

Link to the Birmingham World Cup Final workplan

Link to the Judges List for the World Cup Final

Link to the FIG Preview of the Birmingham World Cup Final

Link to Bruno Grandi's welcome address