Historic medals, incredible comebacks and close misses, the 2026 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships were full of drama.
British gymnasts won three medals in Rotterdam to finish among the top 10 nations in the medal table.
Joe Fraser and Jake Jarman starred in both the team and individual events, but there were plenty of performances to celebrate across the week in the Netherlands. Here are our five best moments.
Fraser claims all-around bronze
Britain's first medal of the Championships came from Fraser in the men’s all-around, where he took bronze with a score of 83.531.
The 27-year-old became Britain’s third men’s all-around medallist, after Dan Keatings and Max Whitlock, and celebrated by sucking his thumb in tribute to his pregnant girlfriend, who was watching on.
Japan’s Daiki Hashimoto won gold with a stunning display and a score of 85.988, while China’s Yang Haonan took silver.
Jarman finished less than a point off the podium in sixth, giving Britain its best double result in men’s all-around history.
Jarman’s historic silver
Jarman was already one of Britain’s most decorated male gymnasts in World Championships history ahead of Rotterdam, and his fourth world medal saw him draw level with Louis Smith and Fraser in second on the all-time list.
His score of 14.600 earned him a silver to add to team bronze in 2022 and individual golds in 2023 and 2025. He arrived in Rotterdam as the defending world champion and Olympic bronze medallist on floor, but was beaten by USA’s Fred Richard, who laid down a score of 14.933.
The Peterborough-born gymnast, who was last to perform, said afterwards he took confidence from knowing there were still more points to come from a routine that earned world silver.
Jarman doubles up
It didn’t take long for Jarman to make more history. His silver in the vault made him the first British male gymnast to win two individual medals at the same World Championships since Max Whitlock in 2015 and it quickly moved him clear of Smith and Fraser in second place on Britain’s all-time list.
Jarman became world champion on vault in Antwerp in 2023 and has won a medal in the event at each of the last four European Championships.
This time, his score of 14.650 placed him second behind Artur Davtyan, one of four Armenian individual medallists in a transformational Championships for the nation.
Martin denied by a hair
Eighteen-year-old Abi Martin missed out on bronze in the women’s floor final to France’s Maiana Prat despite posting an identical score.
Both gymnasts scored 13.466, but Prat’s execution score of 7.866 beat Martin’s 7.666 to take the final podium place as USA’s Claire Pease, 17, won gold.
It has been a spectacular year for Martin, who followed her floor bronze at last year’s World Championships with three medals at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow: vault, floor and team.
Kinsella returns in style
Alice Kinsella made her first major championship appearance since giving birth, shining on vault and floor in the women’s all-around final.
Her 13.833 on vault was among the best of the competition, and she added a strong 13.300 on floor. A fall on beam ended her medal hopes, and she finished 13th, five places ahead of team-mate Martin.
The 25-year-old was delighted with the performance just over a year after the birth of her son, Parker, and says she is determined to keep improving.
Sportsbeat 2026