Jordanian artistic gymnast (born 1995)
Ahmad Abu Al-Soud (Arabic : احمد ابو السعود ; born 5 July 1995)[ 2] is a Jordanian artistic gymnast . He became the first gymnast from Jordan to medal at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships when he won the silver medal on pommel horse at the 2022 World Championships . He then won the bronze medal on the pommel horse at the 2023 World Championships . He is also the 2019 and 2022 Asian champion on the pommel horse. He represented Jordan at the 2024 Summer Olympics , the first gymnast from Jordan to do so.
Career
Abu Al-Soud began gymnastics when he was four years old.[ 3] He considered retiring in 2015, but his coach encouraged him to continue.[ 4]
Abu Al-Soud won the bronze medal on the pommel horse at the 2016 Mersin World Challenge Cup .[ 5] He placed sixth on the pommel horse at the 2017 Koper World Challenge Cup .[ 6] His first World Championships was in 2017 , and he finished 36th on pommel horse in the qualification round.[ 7] He won his first major international medal at the 2019 Asian Championships , a gold on the pommel horse.[ 1] [ 4] He won his first FIG World Cup gold medal at the 2021 Mersin World Challenge Cup on the pommel horse.[ 8]
2022
Abu Al-Soud began the 2022 season with a bronze medal on the pommel horse at the Cairo World Cup .[ 9] He won another pommel horse bronze medal at the Varna World Challenge Cup.[ 10] Then at the Asian Championships , he defended his pommel horse title.[ 11] At the 2021 Islamic Solidarity Games (held in 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic ),[ 12] he was a flag bearer in the opening ceremony alongside Aliya Boshnak .[ 1] He won the gold medal in the pommel horse final.[ 13]
At the World Championships in Liverpool , Abu Al-Soud qualified for the pommel horse event final in eighth place, becoming the first gymnast from Jordan to qualify for an event final at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships .[ 14] He then won the silver medal in the pommel horse final behind Irish gymnast Rhys McClenaghan .[ 15] This marked the first time a gymnast from Jordan and the first time an Arab gymnast had won a medal at the World Championships.[ 3] [ 16]
2023
Abu Al-Soud finished eighth in the pommel horse final at the 2023 Cottbus World Cup .[ 17] At the Asian Championships , he won the silver medal on the pommel horse behind Kazakhstan's Nariman Kurbanov .[ 18] He won the gold medal by nearly a full point on the pommel horse at the Mersin World Challenge Cup.[ 19] At the 2022 Asian Games (held in 2023 due the COVID-19 pandemic ),[ 20] he made a mistake in the qualification round and did not advance into the pommel horse final.[ 21] Then at the World Championships , he won the bronze medal on the pommel horse behind Rhys McClenaghan and Khoi Young .[ 22] Because he finished behind McClenaghan, he did not earn the pommel horse 2024 Olympic berth .[ 23]
2024
Abu Al-Soud registered for the 2024 Apparatus World Cup Series to earn points for Olympic qualification.[ 24] He won the pommel horse gold medal at the first event in Cairo.[ 25] He then won the silver medal behind Kazakhstan's Nariman Kurbanov at the second event in Cottbus.[ 26] He won the gold medal at the final event in Doha,[ 27] securing qualification for the 2024 Olympic Games .[ 28] He is the first Jordanian gymnast to ever qualify for the Olympic Games.[ 29] He was the overall pommel horse winner of the World Cup series[ 30] and entered the 2024 Olympics as the world's number one ranked pommel horse gymnast.[ 31]
Abu Al-Soud won the gold medal at the 2024 Antalya World Challenge Cup ahead of Kurbanov by one-tenth of a point.[ 32] Then at the 2024 Asian Championships , he won the pommel horse bronze medal behind Kubanov and Uzbekistan's Abdulla Azimov .[ 33]
At the 2024 Olympics, Abu Al-Soud fell twice during his pommel horse qualification routine and failed to advance to the final ,[ 34] scoring 12.466 and ranking 51st out of the 64 starting pommel horse gymnasts.[ 35]
Personal life
Abu Al-Soud is in graduate school for a degree in sports science at Al-Ahliyya Amman University .[ 4] [ 36]
Eponymous skill
Abu Al-Soud has a skill on the pommel horse that is named after him in the Code of Points .[ 37] [ 38]
Apparatus
Name
Description
Difficulty[ a]
Added to Code of Points
Pommel horse
Abu Al Soud
Reverse Stockli from cross support on one end to the other
D
2019 Koper World Challenge Cup
^ Valid for the 2022–2024 Code of Points
References
^ a b c "Abu Al Soud Ahmad" . International Gymnastics Federation . Retrieved 8 November 2022 .
^ "51st FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships Liverpool (GBR), 29 October - 6 November 2022 Men Entry List by NOC" (PDF) . USA Gymnastics . International Gymnastics Federation . 31 October 2022. p. 13. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022 .
^ a b Ibrahim Mustafa, Mays (6 November 2022). "Gymnastics 'runs in the blood' of Jordan's 1st world medalist" . The Jordan Times . Retrieved 8 November 2022 .
^ a b c Kwek, Kimberly; Lim, Kai Yue (18 June 2023). "History-making gymnasts from Chinese Taipei, Jordan and South Korea inspire those back home" . The Straits Times . Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Turkish delight at Mersin World Challenge Cup" . International Gymnastics Federation . 4 July 2016. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "FIG World Challenge Cup 2017 Koper, Slovenia Men's Event Finals" (PDF) . USA Gymnastics . p. 2. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Men's Qualifications, 2017 World Championships" . FloGymnastics . Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Three golds for Hungary at final World Challenge Cup of the season" . International Gymnastics Federation . 13 September 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Armenian, Ukrainian gymnasts earn golden triples at Cairo Apparatus World Cup" . International Gymnastics Federation . 22 March 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Varna - Results Men 2022" (PDF) . USA Gymnastics . 30 May 2022. Retrieved 3 May 2023 .
^ Al-Omeri, Khaled (18 June 2022). "Abu Al-Saud wins gold at Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships" . Jordan News . Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ Berkeley, Geoff (23 May 2021). "Islamic Solidarity Games postponed by 12 months due to COVID-19" . Inside the Games . Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ Berkeley, Geoff (11 August 2022). "Iran win hat-trick of wrestling golds at Islamic Solidarity Games in Konya" . Inside the Games . Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Across the Gymnastics universe, a Worlds that rang with the sounds of history" . International Gymnastics Federation . 7 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022 .
^ "McClenaghan earns Ireland's first World title" . International Gymnastics Federation . 5 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022 .
^ "Jordan NOC welcomes home gymnastics silver medallist Ahmad Abu Al Soud" . Olympic Council of Asia . Retrieved 8 November 2022 .
^ "Gymnasts from seven nations snag titles at Cottbus World Cup" . International Gymnastics Federation . 27 February 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Ahmed Abu Al-Saud, a graduate student in the Department of Physical Education and Health at Al-Ahliyya Amman University, won the Silver Medal in the Asian Gymnastics Championship" . Al-Ahliyya Amman University . 18 June 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Magnificent in Mersin, Ukraine and Türkiye savor golden days at World Challenge Cup" . International Gymnastics Federation . 6 September 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ Chakraborty, Amlan (6 May 2022). "Games Hangzhou Asian Games postponed until 2023 over COVID" . Reuters . Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Abu Al-Saud Exits Asian Games" . Jordan Olympic Committee . 24 September 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Olympic champions lead the way as first apparatus titles decided in Antwerp" . International Gymnastics Federation . 7 October 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ Duffy, Patricia (9 October 2023). "Olympic berths awarded as final champions crowned at 2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships" . Gymnastics Now . Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "For Artistic gymnasts, the race to Paris picks up with this week's Cairo World Cup" . International Gymnastics Federation . 13 February 2024. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "Olympic qualification is on as 2024 Artistic Gymnastics Apparatus World Cup series comes alive in Cairo" . International Gymnastics Federation . 20 February 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024 .
^ "Champions in Cottbus! All the thrills from a World Cup weekend to remember" . International Gymnastics Federation . 27 February 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024 .
^ "The Doha decider: inside a doubly significant weekend in Artistic Gymnastics" . International Gymnastics Federation . 22 April 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024 .
^ "23 more Artistic gymnasts have earned Olympic berths! See who's headed to Paris here" . International Gymnastics Federation . 22 April 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024 .
^ "Ahmad Abu Al Soud becomes first Jordanian gymnast to qualify for Olympics" . Olympic Council of Asia . 21 April 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024 .
^ "Nemour, Derwael, Davtyans top the charts as 2024 World Cup series champions" . International Gymnastics Federation . 23 April 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024 .
^ Lomas, Mark (2 July 2024). "Jordanian gymnast Ahmad Abu al-Soud eyes Olympic gold in Paris" . Al Arabiya English . Retrieved 20 August 2024 .
^ "Barbosa, de Jesus dos Santos, Asil make golden impressions as World Challenge Cup season begins" . International Gymnastics Federation . 1 April 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024 .
^ "Impressive Performances at the Senior Men's Artistic Gymnastics Asian Championship in Tashkent" . Asian Gymnastics Union . 19 May 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024 .
^ Xinhua (28 July 2024). "China leads qualifying round of gymnastics men's team" . China Daily Hong Kong. Retrieved 20 August 2024 .
^ "Men's Pommel Horse - Qualification results" (PDF) . Olympics . 27 July 2024. Retrieved 20 August 2024 .
^ "Abu Al-Saud Wins Bronze at the World Gymnastics Championship" . Al-Ahliyya Amman University . 8 November 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
^ "2022 – 2024 Code of Points Men's Artistic Gymnastics" (PDF) . International Gymnastics Federation . p. 76. Retrieved 29 December 2023 .
^ "10 new elements named for their creators in Men's Gymnastics" . International Gymnastics Federation . 13 January 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2024 .
External links
Asian Champions in Artistic Gymnastics – Men's Pommel Horse