Chinese gymnast Ke Qinqin practices a vault jump during a training session on March 26, 2026 in Beijing. Photos: Cui Meng/GT

"Team and all-around are priorities," reads a slogan adorning the wall inside the training venue of China's national gymnastics team in Beijing, as athletes hone their skills following the winter training program.

National gymnastics team leader Lu Bin highlighted the intensity of winter training, noting that the squad was minimizing their technical shortcomings. Yet, he emphasized, true validation would only come on the competition floor. 

"The winter training targeted our weaknesses with focused reinforcement, but we still need the test of actual matches to confirm our progress," Lu told reporters after an open training session on Thursday.

The team is set to depart Beijing this week for Cairo, Egypt, where the Chinese gymnasts will compete at the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup event in Cairo from April 3 to 6. 

The event will mark the World Cup debut of the season for China's young female gymnasts fresh off their winter preparations: Qiu Qiyuan, Yu Linmin, Jiang Shuting and Ke Qinqin. 

Qiu, the 2023 World Championships uneven bars champion and 2024 Paris Olympic silver medalist on the same apparatus, stands as one of the team's most experienced anchors. Fresh from overcoming a recent injury, the 18-year-old said that her current form may not be at peak but she is improving. 

"I've recovered about 60 percent of my strength," Qiu told reporters. "My feel for movement and overall capability are gradually returning. There will be failures along the way, but I'm not afraid. This is all part of building experience for the bigger battles ahead." 

Yu Linmin, who had originally planned to retire after the National Games in November 2025, returned to training this winter and will compete in the vault at the World Cup event in Cairo.

"I just couldn't bear to leave the gymnastics competition floor, and I felt my body was still capable of training, so I came back to the gym," Yu said. "My overall fitness hasn't fully recovered yet, but I've made progress in controlling my routines."

Young prospects

Joining them is a rising cohort of talent. For two of them - Jiang Shuting and Ke Qinqin, both turning 16 this year - it will be a career milestone, their first-ever appearance at a senior-level World Cup stop. 

Jiang has already made waves at the junior level, including appearances at the 2025 Junior World Championships. 

"We will cheer each other up and encourage one another," Jiang said of her comradarie with Ke. "I hope to perform at my training level and stand on the podium for the uneven bars," Jiang said. 

Ke, who dominated the 2025 Chinese National Games by claiming five gold medals across youth and senior categories, expressed a mature mindset for her age. 

"I hope to keep a calm mentality in international competitions, perform my routines boldly, and gain as much experience as possible to prepare for major events later this year," she told the Global Times.

She has already made international headlines this year. 

At the 2026 American Cup in early March, the Chinese team, consisting of Ke, Li Hongyan, Xie Chenyi, Zhang Yangyu, Zhang Qingying and Tian Zhuofan, won the mixed team event, a new team format that will make its Olympic debut at the Los Angeles 2028 Games. 

Following the World Cup event, the Chinese team will continue phased testing of full routines and high-difficulty elements. 

The national championships in May will serve as the critical preliminary selector for the Asian Championships, the Asian Games and the World Championships. 

Team leader Lu also emphasized the home-soil advantage at the Asian Championships, which is set for June in Zunyi, Southwest China's Guizhou Province.

"We expect strong results on home turf, especially in the team competitions," he noted. 

Young Chinese gymnasts check the video recording of their traing with their coach.

Talent pipeline

Historically, the Chinese women's gymnastics team has been overshadowed by the men's team in terms of winning medals at major competitions such as the Olympics and world championships. 

At the 2024 Paris Olympics, the Chinese men's gymnastics team secured silver in the all-around, while Zhang Boheng took individual all-around silver and Zou Jingyuan claimed gold on parallel bars. The men's rings gold for Liu Yang further underscored the Chinese men's apparatus strengths. 

On the women's side, Qiu's uneven bars silver highlighted individual brilliance, though the Chinese women's gymnastics team has historically lagged behind powerhouses like the US in collective depth. 

What sets the 2028 Olympic cycle apart is the emphasis on sustainability and depth, as articulated by Chang Cheng, director of the Gymnastics Management Center under the General Administration of Sport. 

Chang highlighted that advanced, science-based training methodologies have extended athletes' competitive lifespans and preserved peak form far longer than in previous generations. 

"Through more scientific training methods, our athletes' careers and competitive states are now significantly prolonged compared to before," he said, noting the "pass-on-the-torch" inheritance approach fosters mentorship between veterans and newcomers, creating a self-sustaining system.

A gymnastics athletes' committee was established at the beginning of 2025, China Sport Daily reported, as the committee facilitates in-depth discussions on international competition techniques and scientific training, bridging gaps between senior and young athletes.

Complementing the elite level is a flourishing grassroots foundation, Chang said, as a growing number of primary and secondary schools across the country are now incorporating gymnastics programs, expanding the talent pool. 

"Winning glory for the country and bringing benefits to the general public are the two visions we are working on," Chang said. "The national team is a leading force in developing gymnastics in China. We hope the achievements of the national team can inspire more people to take part in gymnastics."