Gymnastics: Kaylia Nemour defends her world title in Rotterdam, six Algerians to compete
The 54th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships open on October 17, 2026, at the Rotterdam Ahoy complex in the Netherlands and conclude on October 25. Algeria is fielding six gymnasts, led by Kaylia Nemour, the reigning Olympic and world champion on the uneven bars.
Born in 2006 and formerly licensed in France before representing Algeria starting in 2022, Nemour became the first African gymnast to be crowned world champion on October 24, 2025, in Jakarta. She scored 15.566 points in the uneven bars final, finishing more than a point ahead of Russia's Angelina Melnikova, with China's Yang Fanyuwei completing the podium, according to Eurosport. A year earlier, in Paris, she had secured Algeria's first Olympic title in gymnastics.
Five women and one man for Algeria
In addition to Nemour, the women's team includes Djenna Laroui, Siham Hamidi, Louna Hamames, and Léna Khenoun. Adam Kougat is competing as an individual in the men's category, reports the Algerian website Planète Sport.
The program begins with qualifications from October 17 to 19, starting with the men and followed by the women. The men's team final is set for October 20, and the women's final for October 21. The individual all-around competitions will be held on October 22 (men) and October 23 (women). The apparatus finals will take place on October 24 and 25: floor exercise, pommel horse, rings, vault, parallel bars, and horizontal bar for the men; uneven bars, balance beam, and floor exercise for the women. It is therefore on October 24 or 25 that Nemour will compete on the apparatus that made her famous.
A cycle leading to Los Angeles 2028
These World Championships are part of the preparation for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. For the other five Algerians, the stated goal is to measure themselves against the world elite, dominated by the United States, China, and Japan, and to consolidate the country's standing in the discipline, indicates Planète Sport.
The continental stakes are simple to state. Artistic gymnastics remains a sport where Africa has few registered athletes and limited high-level equipment: Nemour's titles, won against the greatest nations on the circuit, show that an African path can lead to the top. Rotterdam will determine if the 19-year-old can turn a single feat into a lasting reign.
This article was written in French with the help of artificial intelligence from the sources cited below, then translated from French automatically. Read the original.
