Russia win two golds at trampoline worlds, competing under their flag again

Russia's trampoline team has had a very good day in China: two golds and a silver at the world championships in Nanjing. And they did it under the national flag, which reportedly hasn't happened at a world championship since 2019.

What happened?

The men's double mini-trampoline team took gold with 26 points. The winning lineup was Alexander Butko, Ilya Penkin, Damian Kozmin and Timofey Golubenko.

The women's acrobatic track team won too. Alexandra Lyamina, Elena Neiman, Arina Kalyandra and Polina Novolokina scored 28 points and finished ahead of Belgium and France.

The women's double mini-trampoline squad added silver. Daria Tikhonova, Evgenia Zakharova, Alena Kalashnikova and Galina Begim scored 21 points. The United States won with 24, and Britain took bronze with 20.

Why does the flag matter?

Russian athletes have been barred from competing with national symbols in many international events. According to reports, this is the first world championship since 2019 where the Russian team is competing under its own flag.

It also makes a contrast with the summer. In July, the team skipped the fourth World Cup stage in Coimbra, Portugal, because it was not allowed to compete with national symbols.

What's next?

The world championships in Nanjing finish on 8 November, so there is still one more day of competition. The team has already brought home two golds and a silver.