After missing the Olympic qualification, Vinzenz Höck made it into the rings final at the European Gymnastics Championships in Rimini on Wednesday, as hoped. After a dry spell of six months, he came third in the qualification with a strong free skate with 14.900 points. Only the Greek Eleftherios Petrounias (14.966) and the Turk Adem Asil (14.933) were better.
“I don’t know why, but everything felt easy today,” said Höck afterwards. It’s just a shame that he didn’t achieve something like this before. “It’s crazy that a 14.9 point gymnast isn’t at the Olympics,” said sports director Fabian Leimlehner.
In the entire Olympic qualification in the World Cup, not a single direct competitor came close to Höck’s Rimini performance. Now Höck can rehabilitate himself; he has a chance of winning a medal on Friday (7:30 p.m.). Nicolas Ivkic and Paul Schmölzer, who are only 20 years old, were happy about placing 14th and 15th in the jumping competition.
