Artistic Gymnastics World Championships

The 2009 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships are taking place right now in London, England (until October 18th). London's O2 arena is housing a total of 437 gymnasts from 72 delegations competing for medals in ten events, plus the men's and women's individual all-around medals. The championships at the O2 Arena are seen as a preview of 2012, when London will host the Olympic games, and the O2 will house both basketball and gymnastic events. Collected here are some photographs of training and qualifying rounds from this year, the 41st World Championships. (36 photos total)

A gymnast practices on the rings during a training session before the Artistic Gymnastic World Championships at the O2 Arena in London October 10, 2009. (REUTERS/ Eddie Keogh)

Hadas Koren of Israel leaps above the beam during the qualifying round of the Gymnastics World Championships at the O2 Arena in London October 14, 2009. (REUTERS/Jerry Lampen) #

Cyril Tomasone of France and Steven Legendre of United States compete in the O2 Arena on October 13, 2009 in London, England. (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images) #

Deng LinLin of China applies chalk to the beam during training at the O2 Arena, London, England on October 12, 2009. (CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images) #

Jonathan Horton of the U.S. performs his routine on the vault during the qualifying round of the World Gymnastic Championships in London, England on October 13, 2009. (REUTERS/Jerry Lampen) #

China's Deng Linlin performs in the balance beam event at the 02 Arena, in east London, on October 14, 2009. (CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images) #

Chen Yibing of China grips the rings during the qualification round of the World Gymnastic Championships in London October 13, 2009. (REUTERS/Toby Melville) #

Canada's Charlotte Mackie spins above the uneven bars event during the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships 2009 at the 02 Arena, in east London, on October 14, 2009. The competition runs until October 18. AFP PHOTO / Adrian Dennis (ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images) #

Maxim Devyatovsky from Russia performs an Iron Cross during his routine on the rings during the qualifying round of the World Gymnastic Championships at the O2 Arena in London October 13, 2009. (REUTERS/Jerry Lampen) #

A gymnast trains (seen in a multiple-exposure photograph) at the 02 Arena, in east London, on October 12, 2009. (CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images) #

Zhang Hongtao from China performs his routine on the pommel horse during the qualifying round of the the Gymnastics World Championships at the O2 Arena in London October 13, 2009. (REUTERS/Jerry Lampen) #

A gymnast grips the uneven bars while practicing her routine a day before the start of the World Gymnastic Championships, at the O2 Arena in London October 12, 2009. (REUTERS/Jerry Lampen) #

China's Deng Linlin prepares to perform on the uneven bars at the O2 Arena in London, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham) #

A gymnast reaches for the parallel bars during the qualification round of the Gymnastics World Championships in London October 13, 2009. (REUTERS/Toby Melville) #

Giuliana Bentivegna of Argentina competes on the beam in the qualification round of the Gymnastics World Championships in London October 14, 2009. (REUTERS/Toby Melville) #

Rebecca Wing of Britain performs her floor routine during Women's qualification for the World Gymnastics Championships at the O2 Arena in London, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant ) #

Fabian Leimlehner from Austria performs his routine on the rings during the qualifying round of the the Gymnastics World Championships at the O2 Arena in London October 13, 2009. (REUTERS/Jerry Lampen) #

Hadas Koren of Israel, on the beam in London, England on October 14, 2009. (REUTERS/Toby Melville) #

A gymnast rubs chalk on his hands before performing his routine during the qualification round of the Gymnastics World Championships in London October 13, 2009. (REUTERS/Toby Melville) #

China's Deng Linlin leaps during the balance beam event during the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships 2009 at the 02 Arena, in London, on October 14, 2009. (CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images) #

Feng Zhe of China applies chalk to the parallel bars before his routine at the World Gymnastic Championships at the O2 Arena in London October 13, 2009. (REUTERS/Andrew Winning) #

Greek gymnast Vassilki Millussi trains ahead of the Gymnastics World Championships at the 02 Arena, in east London, on October 12, 2009. (CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images) #

France's Danny Pinheiro-Rodrigues performs in the rings event during the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships 2009 at the 02 Arena, in east London, on October 13, 2009. (ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images) #

Russia's Ekaterina Kurbatova poses during the women's floor event at the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships 2009 in London, England on October 14, 2009. (CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images) #

Ivana Hong of the U.S. is watched by her coach Valeri Liukin as she performs on the beam during a training session for the World Gymnastics Championships at the O2 Arena in London, Monday, Oct. 12, 2009. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham) #

Ukraine's Oleksandr Yakubovs'kyi tumbles during the men's floor event during the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships 2009 at London's 02 Arena, on October 13, 2009. (CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images) #

Anna Serra of Spain and Valentyna Holenkova competes during the second day of the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships 2009 at O2 Arena on October 14, 2009 in London, England. (Clive Rose/Getty Images) #

Marian Dragulescu of Romania launches from the vault during the qualification round of the Gymnastics World Championships in London October 13, 2009. (REUTERS/Toby Melville ) #

Yang Yilin of China leaps high above the beam during the qualifying round of the Gymnastics World Championships at the O2 Arena in London October 14, 2009. (REUTERS/Jerry Lampen) #

Brazil's Diego Hypolito performs his floor routine during men's qualifying for the World Gymnastics Championships at the O2 Arena in London, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2009. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham) #

The feet of a gymnast atop the beam during a practice session for the World Gymnastics at the O2 arena in London, Monday, Oct. 12, 2009. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) #

US gymnast Jonathan Horton flies above the high bar at the 02 Arena, in east London, on October 13, 2009. (CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images) #

Ekaterina Kurbatova of Russia jumps above the balance beam during the second day of the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships 2009 at O2 Arena on October 14, 2009 in London, England. (Clive Rose/Getty Images) #

Kyoko Oshima of Japan, on the uneven bars in the qualification round of the Gymnastics World Championships in London October 14, 2009. (REUTERS/Toby Melville) #

Britain's Rebecca Wing celebrates after performing in the uneven bars event at the 02 Arena on October 14, 2009. (CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images) #

Louis Smith of Britain lifts his arms after his routine on the pommel horse at the O2 Arena in London October 13, 2009. (REUTERS/Andrew Winning (BRITAIN SPORT GYMNASTICS) #

More links and information

Artistic Gymnastics World Championships - Official site

2009 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships - Wikipedia entry

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AWWWW YEAHHH

Posted by alex zych October 14, 09 12:37 PM

The human body is amazing. I love the pictures that show the definition of muscles in use.

Posted by Steve October 14, 09 12:47 PM

Es impresionante la fortaleza de estos deportistas a tan temprana edad, muy buena colecci�n como siempre.

Posted by Hoanho October 14, 09 12:51 PM

The amount of training these athletes do to attain scores to be eligible for the olympics is just incredible. Their hard work shows through

Posted by J K October 14, 09 01:08 PM

Number 8 is weird. She looks like her eyeballs are missing.

Posted by FreakinLoon October 14, 09 01:18 PM

Love #18!

Posted by ScottyT October 14, 09 01:29 PM

I agree, 18 and 14 are really nice. Toby Melville has been killing it! He's had lots of good work, as has Carl De Souza. There's tons of good pictures pouring out of there. Hopefully they'll get to keep working these great angles during the finals.

Posted by Rizzle October 14, 09 01:46 PM

The gymnast in 20 is missing a head.

Posted by Tim October 14, 09 02:07 PM

Amazing image captures. #29 reminds me of a Michelangelo sculpture. Great work by the photographers, I like the multi-exposure images and slow shutter speeds used to convey motion.

Posted by Lee October 14, 09 02:15 PM

Photographic Awesomeness!

Posted by Rob C. October 14, 09 02:15 PM

Beautiful pictures. Amazing. Wonder how you get a hold of these pictures so fast. They are today's pictures and already posted, awesome. Thank you for you Bij Pictures, I am always looking forward to them.

Posted by Leslie October 14, 09 02:35 PM

Really awesome viewpoints in these shots- brilliantly emphasizes how flexible and contorted the poses are that these athletes push themselves into!

Posted by Amanda October 14, 09 02:48 PM

I love gymnastics photos. I wish most of these were pulled back a bit though. The beam is far more impressive if you can actually SEE the beam, and how small it is (4 inches across), while the gymnasts are working on it.

Posted by Ms. Pants October 14, 09 02:50 PM

Totally stunning images as usual.
I love the blurred motion effects and #34 is just amazing.

Posted by Martin October 14, 09 03:41 PM

The cropping of these photos are fairly annoying. Gymnastics is such a beautiful sport, I feel like there could have been a million more shots that would have more imapct...shame.

Posted by Abbott October 14, 09 03:55 PM

Looking at these pictures makes me both regret that I quit and relieved that i quit. It is such an amazing sport that pushes the body to a limit that only another gymnast can understand. I love the faces in these pictures, the strain in them is so telling.
@ comment #5, try to do even a fraction of what she is doing and believe me, you're face is gonna look pretty odd too! :)
All of these pictures are wonderful, i love seeing the stress, concentration, and joy. Competitions, especially the Olympics, are what we lived for

Posted by Shell October 14, 09 04:11 PM

cool. love #34 and #10 timed to perfection.

Posted by Grant October 14, 09 04:13 PM

These are amazing athletes captured by amazing photographers.
Thanks for the great coverage.

Posted by Andrew October 14, 09 04:30 PM

#2 is beautiful and #34 is an awesome shot but makes her look like a blob with her head popping out (2d).

Posted by Randy October 14, 09 04:48 PM

more pictures of china.
more!!

Posted by luca October 14, 09 05:26 PM

#29 is amazing!

Posted by Yan October 14, 09 05:49 PM

Really awesome images! Love them. Not to mention some of the hot guys ;) The male form is beautiful.

Posted by Khristopher October 14, 09 06:33 PM

Great images! Some of the images are very hard to shoot. Super work!

Posted by Steve Lew October 14, 09 06:56 PM

#34 look rly creepy

nice pics as usual

Posted by toox October 14, 09 06:57 PM

beautiful!

my fave is 18

Posted by Jon October 14, 09 07:55 PM

# 34 = the weirdest picture (based on perspective) I have ever seen.
that's gonna give me nightmares lol....

great photos.

Posted by ctothe October 14, 09 08:47 PM

#18 Schrodinger's Gymnast. :)

#20 China is trying to get an unfair advantage by fielding headless gymnasts. I hope she's old enough.

#15, #24 Giggity!

Posted by Mr. Xhin October 14, 09 09:26 PM

9 and 10 are the best.

Posted by King S October 14, 09 09:48 PM

It looks like Danny from France is doing a Victorian on the rings in #24. I would like to know if he is or if he is only in the middle of a giant. I am very interested because I did gymnastics for 7 and 1/2 years.

Posted by Joe October 14, 09 09:48 PM

number 18, 20 and 22 are my faves ! 34 is amazing too.

Incredible athletes !

Posted by Elise October 14, 09 10:06 PM

beautiful!!!!!! seu trabalho � maravilhoso!

Posted by Livia (Brasil) October 14, 09 11:16 PM

okay that stupid replacement window advertisement that danced across my screen and blocked my view was INCREDIBLY annoying. Please get rid of those ads!!! This site was so great without it!

Posted by mike October 15, 09 12:57 AM

Great pics, but what's with the flash add for new windows that wandered out into the frame while I was looking? I don't mind you running some adds, but those intrusive annoying interactive ones really spoil the mood of this site (actually, any site).

Posted by Mike October 15, 09 01:23 AM

Nice pictures, but what's going on in #26? It's obviously the floor mat beneath him (as seen by looking a few pictures down), but why doesn't he cast a shadow?

Posted by Frank October 15, 09 01:59 AM

The most powerful artistic tool, the body!

Posted by Barbara October 15, 09 02:58 AM

truly proves the human body is gods creation. Makes me appreciate gods work even more.....

Posted by Bas van der Vlies October 15, 09 03:15 AM

All numbers Amazing and beautiful Pic.

Posted by mani October 15, 09 03:21 AM

#34 is one heck of a long lens...

Posted by Young Lee October 15, 09 06:03 AM

Simply amazing - Photography at it's best!

Posted by Arek October 15, 09 07:56 AM

Der Wahnsinn, supergute Bilder, vielen Dank

Posted by Claus October 15, 09 08:00 AM

#12 - I always wondered how gymnasts kept from shredding their palms during bar events. Now I know!

Posted by Mike October 15, 09 10:31 AM

Is 20 for the paralympics? No head and no leg? Amazing!!!

Posted by Tabrez Ahmad October 15, 09 05:57 PM

I would like to know the Exif information of those pics, is it possible ?

Posted by Picholine October 15, 09 06:00 PM

#35 is amazing because you realize that these are just young kids doing such incredible things.

Posted by gps October 15, 09 09:53 PM

Great photographs as usual.. #18 the best!!!!

Posted by Ujjal Dey October 16, 09 08:30 AM

#34 is just unflattering. Grossly unflattering..

Posted by Scorp October 16, 09 08:49 AM

muy buenas tomas!!!! gran ojo

Posted by Pato October 16, 09 01:18 PM

Re: pictures #20 and #34.

Not sure you guys are entirely getting the point of these photographs. Look how the gymnasts were able to manipulate their bodies to nearly create a flat plane or straight line. Look at the shapes people make with their bodies. The beauty is in those graceful shapes. Gymnastics is about the ability to do this, not about being pretty or "flattering".

I do see a great deal of beauty and grace in these pictures. It's too bad that some can't.

Posted by L October 16, 09 06:14 PM

Great photos! Thank you!

Posted by Mary October 17, 09 02:29 PM

22 - look at her hands, and the peacefull expression in her face.

Posted by karen October 17, 09 08:15 PM

OMG
my fave is 19....:|

Posted by TapimateHUN October 18, 09 02:20 PM

What can be done with endless training, motivation, determination and belief in yourself; expecting nothing less than perfection!
Tonya Crook McWhorter

Posted by Anonymous October 19, 09 12:42 PM

20 and 29 are very similar poses from two different perspectives (not the exact same, and not the same person, but close). It's really interesting to compare!

And while it may look simple, the amount of strength it takes to perform an iron cross (#9) well is amazing. Gymnasts who can do it without shaking from the muscle strain are amazing.

Posted by Dave October 19, 09 01:17 PM

las im�genes est�n cool, bn buena onda;
espero ver mas q s vean as� los instantes en donde c/emoci�n es capturada y gravada en la placa de la imagen waoo en serio sorprendente,
saludos de CD Panam�

Posted by Mk October 19, 09 03:57 PM

#20 looks scary...headless person

Posted by ryan October 19, 09 08:51 PM

Absolutely beautiful photots! Love the photos of the hands and feet!

Posted by Wendy October 20, 09 11:22 AM

Having been a gymnast, it is fun to guess what skill they were doing at the time the shot was taken. I assure you, you don't FEEL like you're making these shapes!!!

Posted by Teresa October 20, 09 02:07 PM

mmmm...male gymnists.

Posted by Adrienne October 25, 09 04:04 PM

I just saw this gallery right after viewing the one on drug abuse/war... It's so inspirational to see human beings using/taking their body to the limit of positiveness, instead of the contrary.

Posted by Jackson October 28, 09 08:47 PM

IMPREIsONANTE

Posted by ABEL E CARDENAS O October 31, 09 11:45 PM

all of them have a very good performance......

Posted by aljoy romatico November 16, 09 02:18 AM

they r awsome and i am one too

Posted by Anonymous November 16, 09 12:17 PM