Gorgeous premiere for German gymnastics: Timo Eder and Karina Schönmaier won gold at the European Championships in Leipzig in the mixed team final, which was held for the first time. After an impeccable performance, the duo from Ludwigsburg and Chemnitz beat the top favorites Great Britain in the grand final.
On the last of three apparatus, the more than 4,500 spectators cheered for Eder on high bar with 13.333 points and for Schönmaier on balance beam with 12.233 points and a total score of 25.566. It was the second medal for the German Gymnastics Federation (DTB) after silver for the women's team.
The British team scored a total of 25.466 points on the same apparatus. Italy came third, beating France (25.699) for two floor performances in the small final with a total score of 27.966 points for parallel bars and floor.
New competition at the Olympics
The mixed event will be part of the Olympic program for the first time at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles. One woman and one man per nation will compete in the new competition. The pair is automatically made up of the two best gymnasts from the qualification on the previously determined apparatus. In Leipzig, these were floor, parallel bars and high bar for the men and vault, beam and floor for the women. 16 nations qualified for the final. The mode and format for Los Angeles has not yet been determined.
In three rounds, the starting fields were halved until only a duel for third place and the final remained. Only one apparatus was performed in each round, a different apparatus in the second than in the first and the third apparatus in the final round.
"It's really cool to be competing. I'm really excited," said Eder. Men's national coach Jens Milbradt was also looking forward to the premiere with anticipation: "I think it will be a great competition."
The path to the final
Eder and Schönmaier, both 19 years old, opted for the floor in round 1. With 13.433 points for the Ludwigsburg gymnast and 12.833 points for the Chemnitz gymnast, the duo progressed in sixth place. The tactical move of choosing the supposedly strongest apparatus in the second round was a complete success: With 13.933 points each for their performances and a total of 27.866 points, the German gymnastics pair moved on to the grand final against Great Britain (28.366) and had already secured silver before the routines on high bar and beam.
Copyright 2025, dpa (www.dpa.de). All rights reserved
