Yao Jinnan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Yao Jinnan
Full name	Yao Jinnan
Country represented	China
Born	(1995-02-08) February 8, 1995 (age 30) Fuzhou, Fujian, China
Height	145 cm (4 ft 9 in)
Discipline	Women's artistic gymnastics
Years on national team	2011–16 (CHN)
Head coach(es)	王群策 (Wang Qunce)、徐惊雷 (Xu Jinglei)
Music	2010-2011 - West Side Story 2012-2013 - A for Angel 2014 Chinese Nationals - Sphynx 2014 Worlds - The Question of U by Prince
Medal record Representing  China World Championships Gold 2014 Nanning Uneven Bars Silver 2011 Tokyo Balance Beam Silver 2014 Nanning Team Bronze 2011 Tokyo Team Bronze 2011 Tokyo All-Around Asian Games Gold 2014 Incheon Team Gold 2014 Incheon All-Around Gold 2014 Incheon Uneven Bars Gold 2014 Incheon Floor Exercise
Awards	Longines Prize for Elegance

Yao Jinnan (born February 8, 1995) is a former gymnast from China. She was a very talented athlete. She competed for China at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Yao Jinnan became a world champion in 2014 on the uneven bars. She also won a bronze medal in the all-around competition in 2011. Plus, she earned a silver medal on the balance beam in the same year.

She is one of the few gymnasts who could successfully perform a difficult move called the "Mo salto" on the uneven bars.

Yao Jinnan's Gymnastics Journey

Starting Strong in 2011

Yao Jinnan first competed internationally at a World Cup event. This competition was held in Cottbus, Germany. She won three gold medals there. These were for the uneven bars, balance beam, and floor exercise.

After that, she won another gold on floor and a bronze on bars at the Doha World Cup. At the Chinese National Championships in 2011, she earned silver medals. These were for the all-around competition and uneven bars. She also got a bronze medal on floor exercise.

Later, at the Japan Cup, she won a bronze medal in the all-around. Her team also won a gold medal. Her teammates included Yang Yilin, Sui Lu, and Huang Qiushuang.

Yao was chosen for the Chinese team at the 2011 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. She did very well in the first round. She qualified for the all-around, beam, and floor finals. In the team final, her high scores helped China win the bronze medal.

In the all-around final, she had a small mistake on the beam. She still finished third, earning a bronze medal. The gymnasts who placed ahead of her were Jordyn Wieber from the United States and Viktoria Komova from Russia. If she hadn't fallen, she might have been China's first world all-around champion.

In the balance beam final, she won a silver medal. Her teammate Sui Lu won the gold. In the floor final, Yao placed fourth. She was very close to getting another bronze medal.

Competing at the 2012 Olympics

In January 2012, Yao competed at the Olympic Test Event in London. She competed on uneven bars and balance beam. She finished third on bars and fifth on beam. Even with some mistakes, she earned a bronze medal on bars.

At the Zibo World Cup in May 2012, Yao won gold medals. These were for uneven bars and balance beam. Her teammate Huang Qiushuang won silver in both events. Yao was supposed to compete at the Chinese National Championships. However, she had to stop because of a knee injury.

Despite her injury, she was still chosen for the Chinese team. This team went to the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Her teammates were Huang, Sui, Deng Linlin, and He Kexin.

Olympic Games Performance

Yao had a thigh injury during the Olympics. This meant she wasn't at her best. Still, she competed on all four events in the first round. She had falls on beam, floor, and vault.

But on uneven bars, she did great! She scored very high and qualified for the event final. She finished 22nd overall. She couldn't compete in the all-around final. This was because of a rule that only two gymnasts from each country can compete.

In the team final, Yao scored well on bars and vault. China's team placed fourth. They did not win a medal this time. In the uneven bars final, Yao performed a nearly perfect routine. She finished in fourth place, very close to a bronze medal.

Achievements in 2013

In September 2013, Yao competed at the Chinese National Games. She tied for the gold medal in the all-around with Shang Chunsong. She was then chosen for the 2013 World Championships.

At the World Championships, Yao qualified for the all-around and uneven bars finals. In the all-around, she performed the Mo salto on bars. This was a very difficult skill. It hadn't been done by a woman in a World or Olympic competition since 1996. She earned the highest uneven bars score of the day. Later, she fell on beam and finished fifth. In the uneven bars final, she tried the Mo salto again but fell.

Golden Year: 2014

In May 2014, Yao won the all-around title again at the Chinese National Championships. She also won gold on the uneven bars.

Later that year, she competed at the Asian Games in Incheon. She won many gold medals there. She won with her team, in the all-around, and on floor exercise and uneven bars. She was then selected for the 2014 World Championships in Nanning.

At the World Championships, she won a team silver medal with her teammates. Individually, she finished fifth in the all-around. She won her first gold medal at a World Championships in the uneven bars final. She also finished eighth in the balance beam finals. She received the Longines Prize for Elegance. This award came with a trophy, a watch, and money.

Injuries and Retirement

In January 2015, it was announced that Yao would take a year off. She had a shoulder injury that needed surgery. She traveled to the United States for the operation.

In May 2016, Yao competed in the Chinese Nationals. However, she did not win any medals because of her shoulder injury. She was not chosen for the Olympic team for the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Yao Jinnan later retired from artistic gymnastics. Her shoulder injury was the main reason for her retirement.

Personal Life

Yao Jinnan has a twin sister. Her sister also started gymnastics training with her. However, her sister did not continue to the highest level of the sport.

Competitive History

See also

In Spanish: Yao Jinnan para niños