--- title: "Manila Esposito competes in beam and floor finals in Zagreb, Croatia; Italy aims for three-peat in team final" sdDatePublished: "2026-08-14T13:13:00Z" source: "https://www.olympics.com/en/news/2026-european-gymnastics-championships-qualifiers-apparatus-finals-team-who-to-watch" topics: - name: "gymnastics" identifier: "medtop:20000942" - name: "sport" identifier: "medtop:15000000" locations: - "Zagreb" - "Leipzig" - "Belgium" - "Switzerland" - "Germany" - "Hungary" - "Romania" - "Spain" - "France" - "Italy" - "Austria" - "Netherlands" - "Croatia" --- Manila Esposito competes in beam and floor finals in Zagreb, Croatia; Italy aims for three-peat in team final 2026 European Gymnastics Championships: qualifiers and those not-to-miss in the women's apparatus finals and team event 2026 European Gymnastics Championships: Not-to-miss athletes in the women's apparatus finals and team event Day one of competition in Zagreb decided the all-around medallists but also highlighted those to watch including Colas and Esposito. The senior all-around medallists have been decided at the 2026 European Championships in Women's Artistic Gymnastics – but who are the ones to watch in the upcoming apparatus finals and team event at the Arena Zagreb in Croatia? The apparatus finals take place on Saturday with the team final, unusually, on the last day of competition on Sunday. So who are the nations that look likely to contend? Which gymnasts could shine on each apparatus? Olympics.com picks out the not-to-miss routines and showdowns. 2026 European Gymnastics Championships women's competition featuring D'Amato, Esposito and Downie: Stars in action and how to watch live 2026 European Gymnastics Championships: Schedule, final results, scores, and medals - full list Manila Esposito: I love competition and embracing challenges Italy’s two-time Olympic gymnastics medallist reflects on her competitive drive, the emotional bond with her teammates, and why every girl should chase her dreams. European Gymnastics Championships 2026 - who could star in the women's team final? Team World Gymnastics 2, led by all-around winner Angelina Melnikova and second-placed Anna Kalmykova , look hard to beat in the team final. Also vying for medal spots though are the reigning champions Italy - who are going for a three-peat of wins - and Great Britain , the 2023 champions, who finished barely a little more than a tenth of a mark apart in qualification on 160.931 and 160.795, respectively. Other teams in the mix are Germany , the silver medallists last time out; France , who feature stand-out youngster and individual all-around bronze medallist Elena Colas ; and the 2023 bronze medallists Netherlands , who saw the return to the international stage of Rio 2016 Olympic beam champion Sanne Wevers . European Gymnastics Championships 2026 - who could stand out in the women's apparatus finals? Germany's Karina Schönmaier is in contention to defend her vault title from her home event in Leipzig last year after qualifying in second despite a big hop back on her second vault. The first, a huge, floaty double-twisting Yurchenko, will be one to watch come Saturday. Belgium's Lisa Vaelen will be hoping to go at least one better than the bronze medals she won on the apparatus at the 2025 and 2023 editions while Team GB's Abi Martin won silver on the apparatus at the Commonwealth Games just two weeks earlier so is showing good form as she looks to win a first individual continental medal. Another German top qualified on the uneven bars with 18-year-old phenom Helen Kevric scoring a huge 14.766 in a rhythmic elegant routine that included an inbar half to piked Jaeger. The next best was Italy's Elisa Iorio (14.533), a team Olympic silver medallist from Paris 2024 and the silver medallist on bars at the continental championships the same year. Both competed a Downie too but Becky Downie , who the skill is named for, was unable to qualify for the final. Downie, the two-time European champion on the apparatus (2014, 2016) who was competing at her 14th European Championships, told Olympics.com afterwards: "I'm not thrilled by that bar routine but overall I'm happy to be here... I have a job to do for the team and despite being disappointed for myself, I still did my job. My job is to stay on the bar. "I think considering how preparation's been in the past year I've had," said the 34-year-old, citing two shoulder surgeries since she made the bar final at Paris 2024, "I can't be disappointed at what I've put out." Best of Gymnastics | 15th 16th August 2026 | Non stop streaming Experience an adrenaline-fueled, non-stop 48-hour streaming marathon featuring the most iconic, breathtaking, and unforgettable moments in Olympic gymnastics history. From gravity-defying vaults to flawless floor routines, relive the artistry, power, and drama that have defined generations of champions. Esposito, Osyssek-Reimer and Evans set to shine in apparatus finals Manila Esposito , meanwhile, was ethereal in qualification - although the two-time Olympic medallist opted to miss the vault, so did not feature in the all-around competition in which she was also the defending two-time champion. The Italian will feature in both the beam and floor finals, top scoring on the former with a mark of 14.000. Team GB's Alia Leat was thrilled to have performed cleanly on the beam, her specialist apparatus, finishing just 0.067 behind Esposito. "I feel amazing," said a beaming Leat to Olympics.com afterwards. "To finally do the beam routine I know I could do under pressure, just feels surreal." There won't be a duel of the sky-high round-off full twisting layouts in the beam final after all. Romania's Sabrina Maneca-Voinea initially scored high enough to qualify for the final but had her score lowered after an inquiry to the judges, meaning France's Morgane Osyssek-Reimer will be the only one showing that off in the final. Another 14-time entrant in the championships, Pauline Schäfer-Betz of Germany, also qualified for the beam final. Asked if experience helps her keep her nerve on the apparatus, Schäfer-Betz told Olympics.com: "It's always challenging to really keep the focus for beam. It's not really easy to have the feeling like, OK, this is the only chance you can show what you trained many, many years, even when you have a lot of experience. But I think training helps and a little bit of confidence." The world silver and bronze medallists on floor exercise, the British duo of Ruby Evans and Martin respectively, will once again face off in the final. Martin qualified in second after a storming competition, which saw the 18-year-old achieve a personal best score in the all-around. "Personally, I had a good competition," Martin told Olympics.com. "I had a little bit of a struggle on beam starting off but then put out a really good floor routine, which got me back in the zone, gave me the confidence." Italy's new sensation, Giulia Perotti , the Netherlands' Naomi Visser and Spain's Alba Petisco are also ones to watch in the apparatus finals. There's so much still to come. The junior competition takes place on Friday 14 August, giving the seniors time to reset ahead of Saturday's apparatus finals with the women's championships culminating with the team competition before the men's edition begins on 19 August. Score is the average of two vaults. Angelina Melnikova (WG2) - 14.333 (14.033, 14.233, +0.2 bonus applied) Karina Schönmaier (GER) - 14.016 (14.000, 13.633, +0.2 bonus applied) Anna Kalmykova (WG2) - 13.766 (14.100, 13.033, +0.2 bonus applied) Abigail Martin (GBR) - 13.766 (13.800, 13.333, +0.2 bonus applied) Csenge Bacskay (HUN) - 13.733 (13.866, 13.600) Lisa Vaelen (BEL) - 13.716 (14.000, 13.033) Charlize Moerz (AUT) - 13.633 (13.633, 13.233) Greta Mayer (HUN) - 13.383 (13.266, 13.500) Women's uneven bars final qualifiers Helen Kevric (GER) - 14.766 Elisa Iorio (ITA) - 14.533 Anna Kalmykova (WG2) - 14.366 Alena Glotova (WG2) - 14.300 Sanna Veerman (NED) - 14.300 Angelina Melnikova (WG2) - 14.266 NR Naomi Visser (NED) - 14.266 Giulia Perotti (ITA) - 14.133 July Marano (ITA) - 14.000 NR Sofia Shtykhetskaya (WG1) - 13.966 NR indicates does not qualify due to two-per-country rule. Women's balance beam final qualifiers Manila Esposito (ITA) - 14.000 Alia Leat (GBR) - 13.933 Angelina Melnikova (WG2) - 13.833 Anna Kalmykova (WG2) - 13.566 Liudmila Roshchina (WG2) - 13.533 NR Pauline Schaefer-Betz (GER) - 13.500 Morgane Osyssek-Reimer (FRA) - 13.333 Elena Colas (FRA) - 13.300 Aitana Pacheco (ESP) - 13.266 Women's floor exercise final qualifiers Angelina Melnikova (WG2) - 13.800 Abigail Martin (GBR) - 13.500 Manila Esposito (ITA) - 13.400 Elena Colas (FRA) - 13.266 Maiana Prat (FRA) - 13.166 Alba Petisco (ESP) - 13.166 Lena Bickel (SUI) - 13.133 Morgane Osyssek-Reimer (FRA) - 13.100 NR Ruby Evans (GBR) - 13.066 How to watch the 2026 European Gymnastics Championships live You can watch all the action from the women's and men's events of senior and junior qualifications and the junior finals on the paid-for gymtv.onlin e. See here for information. The senior finals on Saturday 15 (women’s apparatus finals), Sunday 16 (women’s team final), Friday 21 (men’s apparatus finals part 1), Saturday 22 (men’s apparatus finals part 2) and Sunday 23 August (men’s team final), in addition to the third last subdivision of the men’s qualification rounds on Wednesday 19 August, will be l ivestreamed via the Eurovision Sports platform . Additionally, check your local TV listings here . An overview of the TV rights holders of the competitions is available for download here . Live scoring is also available . Picture by 2026 Getty Images