After two days of podium trainings, on Monday started the team competition at Moscow´s Olimpiyski Indoor Arena. 148 gymnasts representing 50 countries showed during the morning and the afternoon session either their rope and hoop exercises to the judges and the audience.  The team competition, where every country is allowed to send a maximum of 4 gymnasts doing a total amount of 12 exercises, is at the same time a qualifying competition for the individual gymnasts, for the apparatus finals tomorrow and on Thursday as well as for the individual all-around on Friday for the best 24 only.
A lttle surprise was the gold medal of Daria Kondakova with the rope in front of titleholder Evegenia Kanaeva, who won the title with the rope ...

On fourth place came the gymnasts from Belarus that with 78,625 points didn´t had the expected start into these world championships and who will have to fight the following days with the Ukrainians for the team bronze.
Behind places the young team from Kazhastan with their new leader Anna Alyabyeva and the Israeli team with two strong and experienced competitors like Irina Risenzon and Neta Rivkin, together with Dana Adiv. Remarkable are the 74,400 points for the Austrian team who could beat the Bulgarian girls  (74,100 points) despite of the presence of Silviya Miteva, last year´s world´s medalist.

> Results Team All-around, Day 1

> Results Individual Qualification, Day 1

* Day 2 - Tuesday, September 21, Team Competition:
As expected, also after today´s exercises, the Russian team continues in the lead in Moscow. Evgenia Kanaeva, who performed a flawless hoop routine, Daria Kondakova who only had a minor problem in her first pivot and changed her hoop ending, and Daria Dimitrieva could sum another 84,750 points to their scores from yesterday leading with 169,425 points. Second place the Belarussian gymnasts who performed much better than yesterday, and on provisional bronze rank the girls from Azerbaijan who maybe miss an experienced third gymnast - even if they have their new talent Samira Mustafayeva with them. Fourth place today goes to the Ukrainians who surely want to get closer to the medal ranks again tomorrow with their ball exercises. These four teams, the traditional rhythmic gymnastics countries Russia, Belarus, the - since a few years ago - uprising gymnastics nation Azerbaijan and the Ukraine, are followed by Kazhastan, Israel, Bulgaria, Poland and Austria.

* Provisional Results, Teams
1- Russia 169,425,
2- Belarus 160,150,
3- Azerbaijan 157,950

It seems that, even if we still have two competition days ahead to know who will be the next World Champion, the Russian gymnasts won´t give away their first position. Nevertheless, what happens behind them will be still very interesting with three teams fighting for the silver and bronze medal.

>>> Results Team All-around, Day 2

>>> Results Individual Qualification, Day 2