Armenia Will Have Only 1 Gymnast at the Olympic Games

Armenia will have only 1 gymnast at Tokyo 2020. The European vice-champion Arthur Davtyan (all-around) will participate in the 32nd Summer Olympic Games. The gymnasts would have had a slim chance to compete for spots if they could secure first place at the World Cup held in Cottbus, Germany, from November 21-25.

Prior to the competitions, the head coach of the Armenian national team, Hakob Serobyan, stated that if they achieved the required results in Cottbus, they would also travel to the World Cup in Australia early next year. In an interview with “Armenian Times,” he noted that while he is satisfied with the outcomes, it would only make sense to continue the fight for spots if they had a gymnast occupying the first position.

“I said that if they secured first place, it would make sense to go to Australia, but first place was simply impossible, as the strongest competitors were participating. For example, the second place that Arthur Avetisyan (who won bronze in rings) lost to was occupied by the Olympic champion (Eleftherios Petrounias). The Olympic champion today has no chances. If they had high scores, they would have needed to secure 3 first places (at the World Cups).... since we haven’t participated in all the Cups, there’s no point; here, an Olympic qualification can simply no longer be obtained. Three first places were needed,” he said, confirming that Armenia will have 1 Olympic gymnast.

Out of the 8 qualifying World Cup events, Armenia is missing 2, as they are being held in Baku. Two others are in Australia. From a sporting perspective, participation there is not suitable, which is why the coach would decide to go only in case of strict necessity. The European Championship in 2020 is also a qualifying event. Two spots are up for grabs in all-around, but Armenia will not participate here either, as it is also being held in Baku.

Arthur Davtyan secured the Olympic qualification at the 2019 World Championships. In Rio 2016, Armenia had 3 gymnasts: Arthur Davtyan, Harutyun Merdinyan, and Huri Gebeshyan. Currently, Armenia has a total of 3 spots for Tokyo 2020. Two of these spots were achieved by Greco-Roman wrestlers in the 77 and 97 kg weight categories.

After the Cottbus tournament, gymnasts will compete in the Voronin Cup in Russia. Arthur Davtyan and Arthur Avetisyan will participate. Serobyan has been invited as a judge. The competitions are scheduled to take place from November 28-30.