GymCastic: The Gymnastics Podcast

We're back from Rotterdam with our biggest takeaways from the 2026 World Championships: why imposing AI judging a month before Worlds was unfair, how the Netherlands put on an exceptional Worlds, the broken podium and why equipment should be checked every rotation, sabotage chalk, why the U.S. women need a beam exchange in China, deadlines for non-traveling alternates, and how to fix slow event finals.
Plus Morinari Watanabe tells The Athletic his dream is "no judges, only computers," Ana Bărbosu loses her whereabouts appeal, Meta keeps hosting AI-generated abuse videos of young gymnasts (report them), and the Swiss Cup shows off mixed pairs. Also: the Jordan Chiles documentary Fair Play, Federico Molinari convicted of grooming, the death of legendary coach Leonid Arkayev, and your questions on coaches' travel, starting TeamGym and whether different lineups would have mattered in Rotterdam.
Want ad-free episodes and a weekly members-only show, Behind the Scenes, live every Friday? Join Club Gym Nerd.
GymCastic Live
GymCastic Live in New York City: Friday, December 4, 7:00 pm ET (4:00 pm PT), with special guest Katelyn Ohashi. In person at HERE in SoHo, or stream it live from anywhere.
Missed anything from Rotterdam? All 10 of our Worlds shows are at the 2026 World Championship Headquarters.
Chapters
00:00 Back from Rotterdam + NYC live show with Katelyn Ohashi
01:39 Youth Olympic Games: China wins the mixed team
03:06 Meta hosting AI-generated abuse videos of gymnasts
06:38 Swiss Cup mixed pairs: France beats Germany
11:41 Ana Bărbosu loses her CAS whereabouts appeal
14:55 Watanabe: "Our dream is to have no judges"
17:59 NYC live show and Club Gym Nerd
20:57 Takeaways from Rotterdam: narratives are fleeting
24:16 AI judging a month before Worlds was unfair
24:52 An exceptional Worlds, and checking the podium every rotation
28:04 NCAA makes world champions
29:15 Watch out for sabotage chalk
30:33 A beam exchange in China, and alternates need deadlines
31:55 Fixing slow event finals
36:17 Gymternet news: breast injuries and sports bras
38:11 Federico Molinari convicted; Leonid Arkayev dies at 86
39:38 Jordan Chiles documentary Fair Play
44:24 Para gymnastics rules, Amanda Stroud, Noblesville, American Cup and Champs sites
48:54 Listener Q: who pays for coaches' travel?
51:33 Listener Q: how to start coaching TeamGym
53:34 Listener Q: would lineup changes have mattered?
57:21 Should the U.S. require beam backups?
1:06:55 Live show reminder and see you Friday
Links
Futurism: Meta and AI-generated videos of coaches and young athletes
NBC Sports: Ana Bărbosu's suspension upheld
She Leaps: breast injuries in gymnastics and why the right sports bra matters
International Gymnast: Leonid Arkayev dies at 86
The Hollywood Reporter: Jordan Chiles documentary Fair Play
USA Gymnastics: Amanda Stroud named Women's Program Director
Send us your questions: gymcastic@gmail.com

Coop dislocated his knee outside the Rotterdam arena at 1:30 a.m., and Jessica is finally telling the whole story. First, the news with Kensley Behel of Neutral Deductions: CAS upholds Ana Bărbosu's (ROU) two-year whereabouts suspension, Morinari Watanabe tells The Athletic the goal is no human judges, the Fujitsu vault downgrades, the leaked Donatella Sacchi letter about Reese Esponda (USA), and Jordan Chiles' (USA) new documentary.
This is the free 30-minute preview. The full 114-minute show is for Club Gym Nerd members. That's 84 more minutes, nearly three-quarters of the show, including the whole dislocation and Dutch hospital story, a listener's collapsed lung on a flight home, Worlds and Olympic athletes heading into NCAA, and whether judges ever overrode Fujitsu on vault. Join Club Gym Nerd to hear it all.
GymCastic Live
GymCastic Live in New York City with Katelyn Ohashi: Friday, December 4, 7:00 pm ET / 4:00 pm PT, at HERE in SoHo. Interactive streaming tickets are on sale now; in-person tickets are coming soon.
Missed Rotterdam? The replay of GymCastic Live with Bart Deurloo and Eythora Thorsdottir is only available for a limited time.
Sponsored by Sand & Sea Luxury Travel Advisors: plan your next gymnastics trip with Sand & Sea, promo code GYMCASTICWORLDS.
Chapters
00:00 – Welcome: Coop's Surgery & Breaking News
02:33 – Ana Bărbosu's Whereabouts Suspension
06:55 – Camelia & Sabrina Voinea and the FIG Post
08:38 – Watanabe: No Judges, Fujitsu & Vault Downgrades
14:06 – Jordan Chiles' Documentary
15:00 – The Donatella Sacchi Letter & Reese Esponda
20:58 – Rotterdam Replay & NYC Live Show with Katelyn Ohashi
27:05 – Coop's Dislocation: The Story Begins
29:36 – Hear the Rest with Club Gym Nerd
Limited Time Offer – Make healthy eating simple. Get Huel today with my exclusive offer of 15% OFF online with my code GYMCASTIC at huel.com/GYMCASTIC. New Customers Only. Thank you to Huel for partnering and supporting our show!

Our full Women's All-Around Final show from the 2026 World Championships in Rotterdam, now free for everyone. Skye Blakely is the world all-around champion with 55.733, the first American woman to win the title since Simone Biles. Liudmila Roshchina took silver and Ke Qinqin won bronze despite a beam fall. Favorite Kaylia Nemour overran the vault board, landed on the collar and finished fourth, and Claire Pease was one beam fall away from a medal. Plus why press row got emotional, Elena Colas and artistry, Valeri Liukin's beam ritual, a listener letter on Nemour's beam score, and the kids' press conference.
Hear every episode ad-free, plus live Q&As and the full members-only archive. Join Club Gym Nerd.
GymCastic Live
GymCastic Live in Rotterdam: the replay of our live show at Worlds with Bart Deurloo and Eythora Thorsdottir. Replay tickets are on sale for a limited time.
GymCastic Live in New York City: Friday, December 4, 7:00 pm ET (4:00 pm PT), with Katelyn Ohashi. In-person and streaming tickets.
Thanks to Huel: 15% off online with code GYMCASTIC, new customers only. huel.com/GYMCASTIC
Rotterdam World Championships coverage is brought to you by Sand and Sea Luxury Travel. Use code GYMCASTICWORLDS.
Results
1. Skye Blakely (USA) 55.733 · 2. Liudmila Roshchina (WG2) 55.199 · 3. Ke Qinqin (CHN) 55.032 · 4. Kaylia Nemour (ALG) 54.998 · 5. Aiko Sugihara (JPN) 54.765 · 6. Elena Colas (FRA) 54.666 · 7. Claire Pease (USA) 54.232 · 8. Alba Petisco (ESP) 54.198
Chapters
00:00 Intro: the Women's All-Around Final, now free for everyone
01:07 GymCastic Live Rotterdam: the replay trailer
03:04 Welcome to the all-around final
03:50 Skye Blakely crowned world all-around champion
06:24 Winning on her own plan
09:13 Kaylia Nemour's vault problem
13:26 Ke Qinqin's beam and a medal despite a fall
14:37 Liudmila Roshchina's silver
16:06 Claire Pease's beam fall
18:19 Blakely, Florida and the college-elite path
21:41 Blakely's four events
23:27 World feed issues
24:38 A word from Huel
26:57 Glotova's double beam fall
28:06 Lisa Vaelen's straddle full
29:15 Ellie Black's beam after a fall
30:09 Correction: Gina Pongetti and MedGym
31:14 Club Gym Nerd and live shows
33:24 Why press row got emotional over Blakely
35:56 Roshchina on beam
37:16 Elena Colas and artistry
39:08 Double fulls in the lead group
41:41 Aiko Sugihara
42:33 Alba Petisco's score
44:04 Flavia Saraiva
45:20 Pease and Valeri Liukin's beam ritual
46:22 Perotti, Tonelli and Kinsella
48:26 Prat, Kishi and Scott
49:23 Listener letter: Nemour's beam score
51:23 Does a pause count as a connection?
53:14 What Japanese gymnasts yell
53:36 Live show tips
55:27 Fujitsu and Blakely's beam score
58:03 A floor fix
1:00:21 The arena and the kids' press conference
1:01:21 Sign-off
Links
2026 Worlds Headquarters
Elite Score Explorer
LA 2028 Roster Lab
MedGym with Gina Pongetti
Shop GymCastic

Kaylia Nemour won both bars and beam at the 2026 World Championships in Rotterdam, taking beam gold over Zhang Qingying of China on an execution tiebreak, while Flavia Saraiva finally won her first world beam medal. Claire Pease and Reese Esponda went one-two on floor, Maiana Prat took bronze on another tiebreak, and the U.S. women leave Rotterdam with seven medals. Artur Davtyan stuck both vaults for gold, Sebastian Sponevik won Norway's first world medal ever, Frederick Richard won the floor title he promised, and Tang Chia-hung took high bar. Plus the credit crisis of these Worlds, from Carlos Yulo to Ellie Black, and the coach who said out loud what others wouldn't. Our final live show from inside Rotterdam Ahoy.
This is the free 25-minute preview. The full 67-minute show is for Club Gym Nerd members. That's 42 more minutes, nearly two-thirds of the show, including Epke Zonderland and Fabian Hambüchen's high bar stick-it contest, the Nemour versus Zhang beam debate, Flavia's champagne, Maiana Prat's stinky floor medal and Frederick Richard calling his shot. Join Club Gym Nerd to hear it all. Want to try it first? The Worlds Coverage Bundle is 3 months of Club Gym Nerd for $14.99, no auto-renewal.
GymCastic Live
GymCastic Live in Rotterdam: the replay of Saturday's show with Bart Deurloo and Eythora Thorsdottir. Replay tickets are still on sale.
GymCastic Live in New York City: Friday, December 4, 7:00 pm ET (4:00 pm PT), with Katelyn Ohashi. In-person and streaming tickets.
Rotterdam World Championships coverage is brought to you by Sand and Sea Travel. Use code GYMCASTICWORLDS.
Chapters
00:00 Welcome to event finals, day two
01:13 Rhys McClenaghan answers a critic
01:59 Surprise: Simone Biles in Rotterdam
02:58 Kaylia Nemour wins bars and beam
05:04 Should FIG stop breaking ties?
07:06 The tiebreaks that decided beam gold and floor bronze
08:36 Seven medals for the U.S. women
11:07 Why is nobody getting credit? Carlos Yulo and Ellie Black
12:39 Reese Esponda's coach on FIG's last-minute changes
16:25 Artur Davtyan's two stuck vaults
19:31 Opportunity for comedy: Bart Deurloo and Eythora Thorsdottir live
21:28 Your comedy moments
22:25 Club Gym Nerd and GymCastic Live
24:24 Club preview: what Jake Jarman's dad said to Bart and Eythora
2026 World Championships Headquarters: every session in your time zone, every qualified team and gymnast.
Episode page and show notes

Skye Blakely is the world all-around champion. The 21-year-old Florida Gator won gold at the 2026 World Championships in Rotterdam with 55.733, becoming the ninth American woman to win the world all-around title and the first since Simone Biles, and she did it on her own plan, without the Cheng. Liudmila Roshchina took a surprise silver and Ke Qinqin of China won bronze despite a fall on beam. Favorite Kaylia Nemour overran the springboard on her opening vault, landing on the safety collar, and fought back to finish fourth, while Claire Pease was one beam fall away from a medal. Our sleep-deprived reactions from inside Rotterdam Ahoy.
This is the free 27-minute preview. The full 57-minute show is for Club Gym Nerd members. That's 30 more minutes, more than half of the show, including the international world peace officer, why press row cried for Skye Blakely, Claire Pease and Valeri Liukin's mirrored beam ritual, and your letters on Fujitsu and Skye's beam D score. Join Club Gym Nerd to hear it all. Want to try it first? The Worlds Coverage Bundle is 3 months of Club Gym Nerd for $14.99, no auto-renewal.
GymCastic Live
GymCastic Live in Rotterdam: Saturday, October 24, 7:00 pm CEST (10:00 am PT), with Bart Deurloo and Eythora Thorsdottir. In-person is sold out; stream it live from anywhere.
GymCastic Live in New York City: Friday, December 4, 7:00 pm ET (4:00 pm PT), with Katelyn Ohashi. In-person and streaming tickets.
Rotterdam World Championships coverage is brought to you by Sand and Sea Travel. Use code GYMCASTICWORLDS.
Thank you to Gina Pongetti of MedGym for caring for Fact Checker.
Chapters
00:00 Welcome to the women's all-around final
00:46 Skye Blakely is world all-around champion
03:20 Winning Worlds on her own plan
06:09 Kaylia Nemour's vault disaster
10:22 Ke Qinqin's beam is so good she can fall and still medal
11:33 Liudmila Roshchina's surprise silver
13:02 Claire Pease's beam fall
15:15 Skye, Florida and the college-elite path
18:37 Skye's four events
20:23 The world feed problem
21:33 Opportunity for comedy: Alena Glotova falls off beam twice
22:43 Best moment: Lisa Vaelen's straddle full
23:52 Ellie Black performs the beam rage away
24:46 A correction: Gina Pongetti and MedGym
25:51 Club Gym Nerd and GymCastic Live
27:11 Club preview: the international world peace officer
2026 World Championships Headquarters: every session in your time zone, every qualified team and gymnast.
Episode page and show notes