Silver Medalist Zhou Yaqin Might Be Just 4 Feet 10 Inches Tall!
So, Zhou Yaqin, this super talented gymnast from China, just snagged a silver medal in the balance beam event at the 2024 Paris Olympics, and people can’t stop talking about her! She’s only 18 and already killing it on the world stage.
On August 5, Zhou totally crushed it in the women’s gymnastic balance beam final. But, like, besides her skills, everyone’s been wondering about her height because she looked pretty tiny next to her Italian teammates, who are around 5’2” (158 cm).
Female gymnasts usually fall somewhere between 4’9” (145 cm) and 5’4” (163 cm), and based on pics and stuff, Zhou seems to be around 4 feet 10 inches (147 cm) tall. But yeah, her exact height isn’t officially out there yet.
Zhou Yaqin’s Gymnastics Journey Started When She Was Just 3!
Zhou’s been into gymnastics since she was three, which is wild. She joined her provincial team early on and has been leveling up ever since. In her early teen years, she placed 14th in the all-around at the National Youth Games, which was a big deal because it got her into the 2019 Olympic Hopes Cup in the Czech Republic, where her team took home gold.
Fast forward to 2021, and Zhou became old enough to compete in senior international events. She totally dominated the balance beam, scoring a 14.660 and winning gold. She’s also been killing it at various Chinese and World Championships, which got her to the Paris Olympics.
Even though her Chinese team finished sixth, and she got a 0.50 deduction on her individual performance, Zhou still made it to the podium. She even went viral during the medal ceremony when she was all confused about the whole biting-the-medal thing that the gold and bronze winners were doing. It was pretty adorable, and people on social media loved it.
One person on X (formerly Twitter) even said, “Zhou Yaqin has to be the cutest Olympic medallist so far.”
Extra Stuff You Might Wanna Know:
- Zhou Yaqin trained under coaches Jiang Suchun and Wang Liming once she was old enough for international competitions.
- She won the gold medal on the balance beam with a score of 15.066 at the Chinese Individual Championships.
- Zhou made a big splash at the 2023 World Championship in Antwerp, where she had an amazing senior international debut.
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