Artem Dolgopyat turned senior in 2015 but injuries prevented him from achieving great results on the international scene for a while. At the 2015 Worlds which served as a qualifier for the Rio Olympics, he finished 133rd on floor and 103rd in the all-around. At the 2017 Worlds, the Israeli federation didn’t even expect him to make the finals and planned for him to leave Montreal right after the qualification. When he made the floor final, they had to rebook his plane ticket and book additional hotel nights. He went on to win floor silver, the highest result for Israeli artistic gymnastics ever.
He came to Tokyo as one of the medal favorites on floor, with two World medals and three European medals on the event. He said prior to the qualifications:
“We’re finally getting to this moment after the postponement and it’s very exciting. I have to be focused and do everything how I know to do. This is the moment I’ve been preparing for my whole life. If I do my routine the way I can, I will be able to medal. But I don’t think about it. I need to be as modest as possible and focus on my routine.”
Dolgopyat competed in the first subdivision and his 15.200 held up until the end of the qualification – he qualified to the floor final in first place. He told Ynet:
“I felt great today. I was very anxious at first and my whole body seized up but I did the best job I could and I’m happy with that. I try not to look at what’s happening around. What was important to me was to do the best job I could on floor and that’s what happened.”
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