Antalya World Cup 2025:
Breakthroughs and Rising Contenders

Antalya Marks 3rd Stop of 2025 World Cup Series

The third stop of the 2025 FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Cup series brought Olympians, rising seniors, and event specialists to Antalya, Turkey. Across four days of competition, gymnasts unveiled new skills, delivered medal breakthroughs, and set early-season scoring benchmarks as the road to October’s World Championships in Jakarta came into focus.

Yang Fanyuwei Debuts New Skill

China's Yang Fanyuwei delivered the meet's standout performance on uneven bars, hitting a routine with 6.6 difficulty and 8.200 execution for 14.800 total. The 20-year-old from Yunnan tested out a brand new skill, a Jaeger with a full twist in layout position position, now officially recognized by FIG as “The Fanyuwei.” Connecting this high-risk element out of a one-arm pirouette, Yang showcased the technical precision long associated with Chinese gymnastics. Her 14.800 stood as the highest score of any apparatus final in Antalya and established her as an early contender for bars gold at this fall’s World Championships.

Chusovitina Makes Third Straight Vault Final

Oksana Chusovitina placed fourth on vault with 13.366, just 0.001 behind bronze medalist Tjaša Kysselef (13.367), and missing the podium for the first time in her 2025 World Cup campaign. The soon to be 50-year-old 8X Olympian had won gold at the most recent Baku World Cup in March, following bronze at February's Cottbus World Cup. This season marks her tenth Olympic quad. After missing Paris due to injury, she continues building toward a potential ninth Olympic Games in Los Angeles 2028. Her longevity and vault expertise remain a benchmark for gymnasts pursuing extended careers at the elite level, with apparatus finals appearances now spanning four decades.

Hang and Pease go 1-2 in VT finals

Americans Jayla Hang and Claire Pease claimed vault gold and silver, separated by just one tenth. Hang won gold (13.666) with a DTY and a Servente, posting identical 8.866 execution scores on both. Pease performed the same pair of vaults, earning 13.566 for silver.

This was the first 2025 World Cup appearance for both US gymnasts. Hang, a second year senior and Florida NCAA commit for 2026, qualified to all four apparatus finals and added her first World Cup gold to an already growing résumé.

Sugihara claims Floor gold

2X Olympian Aiko Sugihara secured floor exercise gold (13.633), combining signature artistry with controlled tumbling pass landings. The victory marked her first World Cup podium finish and reinforced Japan’s depth on floor following strong early season showings. Sugihara’s 8.133 execution score topped a compressed field where precise landings separated medalists from the rest of the finalists.

Scoring Patterns Emerging in Early Season

Antalya’s results reflected a broader early 2025 pattern: gymnasts are pushing difficulty while maintaining execution. Gold medal routines in Antalya set season-high World Cup scores on vault, bars, and floor.

World Championships Implications

In Antalya, several gymnasts emerged as early leading contenders for Jakarta. Yang’s bars, with upgrade potential to 6.8 difficulty, positions her among the frontrunners for gold. The U.S. women displayed execution-first strategies likely to be decisive, while Sugihara’s floor victory strengthened Japan’s medal outlook.

Following Paris, gymnasts are using World Cup stops to gain international experience, refine routine construction, and pressure test upgrades on the world stage. This activity is expected to intensify this summer as the calendar builds toward the premier event of the season: the 2025 World Championships in Jakarta.