Hashimoto dominates to retain gymnastics world all-around title

In Rotterdam, Japan's Daiki Hashimoto successfully defended his men's individual all-around title at the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships on Thursday. The 25-year-old, from Narita, overcame fierce competition from China's Yang Haonan and Britain's Joe Fraser to secure his seventh world title and fourth consecutive all-around crown. Hashimoto triumphed by a substantial margin of 1.799 points, marking the largest victory margin in a men's all-around event at an Olympics or worlds in 13 years.

Hashimoto, a fitting successor to Kohei Uchimura, faced an initial setback against Yang, who started strong on the floor exercise and rings. However, Hashimoto's resilience shone through as he delivered outstanding performances on the parallel bars and horizontal bar, ultimately clinching victory.

The day was not without disappointment for the competitors. Oka, the reigning Olympic champion, faced a tough evening after two botched landings on vault during the fourth rotation, leaving him without a podium finish. Russia's Arsenii Dukhno, trailing Hashimoto by just 0.1 points before the final rotation, suffered a significant setback when he fell on the horizontal bar due to a missed grip, resulting in a seventh-place finish. The World Championships continued on Thursday with the women's individual all-around competition.