--- title: "Gymnasts qualify for rhythmic gymnastics at LA28 in Los Angeles; USA host nation quota: one individual, one group." sdDatePublished: "2026-08-09T13:43:00Z" source: "https://www.olympics.com/en/news/how-to-qualify-rhythmic-gymnastics-la28-olympics-qualification-system" topics: - name: "gymnastics" identifier: "medtop:20000942" - name: "Olympic Games" identifier: "medtop:20001177" - name: "sport" identifier: "medtop:15000000" locations: - "Baku" - "Los Angeles" - "Paris" - "Rio de Janeiro" - "Frankfurt am Main" - "Varna" - "United States" --- Gymnasts qualify for rhythmic gymnastics at LA28 in Los Angeles; USA host nation quota: one individual, one group. How to qualify for rhythmic gymnastics at LA28 Olympics: The qualification system explained How to qualify for rhythmic gymnastics at LA28 Olympics: The qualification system explained How does rhythmic gymnastics qualification for the LA28 Olympics work? Find out everything you need to know about the format, key events, stars to watch and number of athletes. Olympic rhythmic gymnastics at LA28 will feature two events, the individual all-around and the group all-around. A total of 94 gymnasts will compete: 24 individuals and 14 groups of five. Individual quota places from the 2026 and 2027 World Championships are allocated to National Olympic Committees (NOCs), while individual places from the 2026-2027 World Cup Series can be either nominative or awarded to the NOC, depending on whether a nation has already earned a quota at the 2026 World Championships. Quotas awarded through Continental Championships are nominative. All group quota places are allocated to NOCs. Individual gymnasts and groups can qualify through the 2026 World Championships, the 2026-2027 World Cup Series, the 2027 World Championships and the 2028 Continental Championships, with host nation and universality places also available. The United States of America , as host nation, is guaranteed one individual and one group quota place if not qualified through the other criteria. The first qualifying competition is the 2026 World Championships, set for 12-16 August in Frankfurt. Rhythmic gymnastics qualification at LA28 Olympics: Key facts There are two events in rhythmic gymnastics at LA28, the individual all-around and the group all-around. Only women compete. The qualification pathway begins with the 2026 World Championships in Frankfurt (12-16 August 2026) and concludes with the Continental Championships in April-May 2028. The final Olympic entries deadline is 26 June 2028. Gymnasts can qualify as individuals through four events or series: the 2026 World Championships, the 2026-2027 World Cup Series, the 2027 World Championships and the 2028 Continental Championships; host nation and universality places are also available. Groups can qualify through the same four events plus a host nation place. No NOC may enter more than seven gymnasts, a maximum of two individuals and one group of five. To be eligible to participate at LA28, athletes must comply with the Olympic Charter currently in force, including nationality requirements, anti-doping regulations and the eligibility rules established by World Gymnastics. All athletes must also hold a valid World Gymnastics licence. All athletes must have been born on or before 31 December 2012. Rhythmic gymnastics: Madonna - Vogue | Music Mondays The Ukrainian team perform to Madonna's classic hit 'Vogue' during the Rhythmic Gymnastics competition at Rio 2016. How does individual qualification for the LA28 Olympics work? There are four ways for gymnasts to qualify as individuals, plus host nation and universality places. The 2026 World Championships in Frankfurt (12-16 August 2026) come first. The three highest-ranked gymnasts in the individual all-around final will each earn a quota place for their NOC. The 2026-2027 Individual World Cup Series is the next criteria, with up to eight events held from March 2026 to June 2027. A gymnast's best four all-around results count towards an Olympic ranking list, and the top two on that list qualify, a maximum of one per NOC. If an NOC already has two quota spots from the 2026 Worlds, they cannot obtain a third. The 2027 World Championships in Baku (15-19 September 2027) offer the most places. The 12 highest-ranked gymnasts in the all-around during the qualifying round, no more than two per NOC, will each earn a quota place for their NOC. The final five individual places are decided at the 2028 Continental Championships in April-May 2028. At each continent's championships, the highest-placed gymnast from an NOC not already qualified through the earlier criteria earns one quota place, for five in all. One further place goes to the host nation and one is a universality place. The quotas awarded at the 2026 and 2027 World Championships go to the NOC, which decides which gymnast fills them. The World Cup (except when an NOC has already qualified one gymnast from the 2026 Worlds), continental, host and universality places are allocated to the gymnast by name. A total of 24 individual gymnasts will compete at LA28, a maximum of two per NOC. Babi Domingos Lights Up with “Bad Romance” Routine | Olympic Games Paris 2024 How does group qualification for the LA28 Olympics work? There are four places for groups to qualify as well: the 2026 World Championships, the 2026-2027 Group World Cup Series, the 2027 World Championships and the 2028 Continental Championships, plus a host nation place. The three highest-ranked NOCs in the group all-around final at the 2026 World Championships will each qualify a group. The top NOC on the 2026-2027 Group World Cup Series ranking will add one more. The 2027 World Championships in Baku will qualify a further four groups, awarded to the four highest-ranked eligible NOCs not already through. The 2028 Continental Championships deliver the last five places, one to the highest-ranked eligible NOC from each continent. The host nation is guaranteed a group place if it has not qualified by another route. A total of 14 groups of five gymnasts will compete at LA28, one group per NOC. Individual All Around Final | Rhythmic Gymnastics | Olympic Games Paris 2024 The Rhythmic Gymnastics Individual All Around Final was held on 09 2024 at La Chapelle Arena, Paris. Darja Varfolomeev (GER) claimed Gold, Boryana Kaleyn (BUL) took Silver and Sofia Raffaeli (ITA) completed the podium. How many athletes will compete in rhythmic gymnastics at LA28? Olympic rhythmic gymnastics at LA28 will feature two events, the individual all-around and the group all-around. A total of 94 gymnasts will compete: 24 in the individual all-around and 70 in the group all-around, made up of 14 groups of five. Sky's the limit for rhythmic gymnastics champion Darja Varfolomeev: 'There are always things to improve' The five-time champion from the 2023 Rhythmic Gymnastics Worlds reflects on her early experiences in the sport, the challenges she encountered when moving to Germany, and how working with a psychologist has been beneficial: 'We are doing mental exercises like visualising the routines...The psychologist tells us, 'Look, you have trained a lot and you have already had a lot of success, you can achieve anything'," she shared in this exclusive interview. Watch for more. What is the LA28 rhythmic gymnastics competition format and schedule? The LA28 Olympic Games will take place from 14-30 July 2028, with rhythmic gymnastics held at the Galen Center in the closing days of the Games. Individual all-around qualifying opens the discipline on Thursday 27 July. Group all-around qualifying and the individual all-around final follow on Friday 28 July. The group all-around final is on Saturday 29 July. In the individual all-around, gymnasts perform routines with four apparatus – hoop, ball, clubs and ribbon. The field is reduced through a qualification round, with the leading gymnasts advancing to the all-around final, where the medals are decided. In the group all-around, each group performs two routines in qualification, with the leading groups advancing to the group all-around final. Rhythmic gymnasts and groups to watch at LA28 Olympics* One name sits above the rest. Darja Varfolomeev won individual all-around gold at Paris 2024 on her Olympic debut and has not slowed down since. The German defended her 2023 world title in Rio two years later and took European gold in Varna in May 2026, holding off Bulgaria's Stiliana Nikolova . The Bulgarian is closest behind, having taken silver behind Varfolomeev at both the 2025 World Championships and the 2026 European Championships. Sofia Raffaeli carries Italy's hopes. The 2022 world all-around champion, the first Italian woman to win the title, claimed a historic bronze at Paris 2024 for Italy's first Olympic rhythmic all-around medal, then finished third again in Rio. Ukraine's Taisiia Onofriichuk , the European bronze medallist in Varna and the 2025 continental winner, could also contend. The group race is wider open. People's Republic of China won the group all-around gold at Paris 2024, the nation's first Olympic title in the discipline. Japan answered by taking the world group all-around crown in Rio last year, edging home favourites Brazil. Spain has won back-to-back European group all-around titles in 2025 and 2026. Find out more about the qualification system for other sports that will feature at Los Angeles 2028. *As National Olympic Committees have the exclusive authority for the representation of their respective teams at the Olympic Games, athletes' participation at the LA Games depends on their NOC selecting them to represent their delegation at LA28. Picture by 2024 Getty Images 14 - 30 July 2028 LA 2028 | Olympic Games | USA