LONDON (Reuters) – Vanessa Ferrari hit full throttle on Wednesday as she led a super-charged Italian team to glory at the qualifying event for the 2012 Olympics.

Ferrari displayed the form that landed her the 2006 all-round world title by impressing the judges on all four apparatus to secure the Italians a place in the July 27-August 12 London Games.

Ferrari, Erika Fasana and Carlotta Ferlito made sure Italy held on to the lead from start to finish as they eclipsed Canada by 2.708 points. France and a hugely relieved Brazil overcame falls from the beam to snatch the final two spots to complete the 12-nation line-up for the team competition at the Olympics.

They join the United States, Russia, China, Romania, Britain, Germany, Japan and Australia, who had all booked their places at the world championships in October.

“We were well prepared. We have been training hard since July last year. After not getting through at the Tokyo world championships we continued to train even harder and are so, so happy to be here,” said Italy’s Chiara Gandolfi.

While Italy enjoyed a smooth ride thanks to the nerveless displays of Ferrari, Fasana and Ferlito – who completed a sweep of the top three places in the all-round standings – the real drama was to see who would grab the last two places.

The occasion seemed to get to many of the competitors whose Olympic hopes disappeared in a flash after they lost their grip on the asymmetric bars or tumbled off the beam.

LONDON, Jan 11 (Reuters) – Vanessa Ferrari hit full throttle on Wednesday as she led a super-charged Italian team to glory at the qualifying event for the 2012 Olympics.

Ferrari displayed the form that landed her the 2006 all-round world title by impressing the judges on all four apparatus to secure the Italians a place in the July 27-Aug. 12 London Games.

Ferrari, Erika Fasana and Carlotta Ferlito made sure Italy held on to the lead from start to finish as they eclipsed Canada by 2.708 points. France and a hugely relieved Brazil overcame falls from the beam to snatch the final two spots to complete the 12-nation line-up for the team competition at the Olympics.

They join the United States, Russia, China, Romania, Britain, Germany, Japan and Australia, who had all booked their places at the world championships in October.

“We were well prepared. We have been training hard since July last year. After not getting through at the Tokyo world championships we continued to train even harder and are so, so happy to be here,” said Italy’s Chiara Gandolfi.

While Italy enjoyed a smooth ride thanks to the nerveless displays of Ferrari, Fasana and Ferlito – who completed a sweep of the top three places in the all-round standings – the real drama was to see who would grab the last two places.

The occasion seemed to get to many of the competitors whose Olympic hopes disappeared in a flash after they lost their grip on the asymmetric bars or tumbled off the beam.

LONDON (Reuters) – After a restless night wondering whether he would get the chance to participate at a record sixth Olympics, Bulgarian Jordan Jovtchev discovered on Wednesday that he had made the cut for the 2012 Games.

The news, more than 24 hours after the men’s qualifying competition ended, will come as a huge relief to the Bulgarian gymnastics federation as the 38-year-old Jovtchev had said its survival depended on whether he made it to London for the July 27-August 12 event.

“He did great so he deserves to go to the Olympics. He’s exceptional,” Jovtchev’s coach Krasimir Dunev told Reuters.

Dunev competed alongside Jovtchev as his team mate at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics.

While Dunev gave up the sport more than 15 years ago, Jovtchev still thrives on the challenge of testing his skills, and his bruised body, against his 20-something rivals.

“I’m worried about how he keeps going against these younger rivals. But he does better many of them,” said Dunev of Jovtchev, who plans to compete only in his signature rings discipline.

Complicated qualification criteria meant officials had to spend hours going through the results to work out which individuals would be granted a place at the Games.

LONDON, Jan 11 (Reuters) – After a restless night wondering whether he would get the chance to participate at a record sixth Olympics, Bulgarian Jordan Jovtchev discovered on Wednesday that he had made the cut for the 2012 Games.

The news, more than 24 hours after the men’s qualifying competition ended, will come as a huge relief to the Bulgarian gymnastics federeration as the 38-year-old Jovtchev had said its survival depended on whether he made it to London for the July 27-Aug. 12 event.

“He did great so he deserves to go to the Olympics. He’s exceptional,” Jovtchev’s coach Krasimir Dunev told Reuters.

Dunev competed alongside Jovtchev as his team mate at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics.

While Dunev gave up the sport more than 15 years ago, Jovtchev still thrives on the challenge of testing his skills, and his bruised body, against his 20-something rivals.

“I’m worried about how he keeps going against these younger rivals. But he does better many of them,” said Dunev of Jovtchev, who plans to compete only in his signature rings discipline.

Complicated qualification criteria meant officials had to spend hours going through the results to work out which individuals would be granted a place at the Games.

LONDON, Jan 10 (Reuters) – Daniel Purvis and Daniel Keatings demonstrated their all-round skills on Tuesday to ensure the British men would not miss out on their own Olympic party as they won the qualifying event for the London Games.

The British team, featuring Olympic pommel horse bronze medallist Louis Smith and 2009 world all-round silver medallist Keatings, had to wait until 199 days before the Games kick off to secure their place in the final lineup after failing to make the cut during last October’s world championships in Tokyo.

Britain finished on 358.227 points, more than seven ahead of nearest rivals France. Spain and Italy grabbed the final two men’s team spots for the Olympics.

Canada had led the competition after two rotations but were edged out by just 0.442 of a point.

The four qualifiers on Tuesday will be vying for the Olympic team accolade with China, Japan, United States, Russia, Ukraine, Germany, South Korea and Romania.

Three months ago, botched performances on the horizontal bar cost Britain dear and on Tuesday the same apparatus again proved to be their weak link as they stood fifth in the standings following the first of six rotations.

But strong displays on the pommel horse, with Keatings, Smith and teenager Max Whitlock all breaching the 15-point barrier thanks to their fast-paced swivels over the wood, helped them to surge into the lead by the end of the fourth rotation.

LONDON (Reuters) – The prospect of competing at a record sixth successive Olympics is not the only thing spurring Jordan Jovtchev to battle through the pain barrier this week. If the 38-year-old Bulgarian dynamo books his ticket to the London Games in July, it will also ensure the survival of his federation.

“I’m competing to support the Bulgarian gymnastics federation. If we have a gymnast who goes to the Olympic Games, then we will have a head coach, a masseuse, doctors going to the Olympics,” Jovtchev, elected president of the body in 2009, told Reuters on Tuesday after competing at the Olympic qualifying event in the North Greenwich Arena.

“If we don’t have a male going to the Olympics, it will be tough for the Bulgarian gymnastics federation to survive. (So keeping a lot of people employed) is part of it,” he added with a grin.

As a veteran of five Olympics and winner of four world titles, Jovtchev’s career is now spilling over into a third decade during which time he has been recognised as Bulgaria’s most famous and decorated gymnast.

Jovtchev arrived in London with a torn left shoulder muscle and a sore elbow but hid his pain well to perform the tumbles, twists and turns needed to impress the judges on the six apparatus.

With his distinctive salt-and-pepper hair, Jovtchev could easily be mistaken for an official or a coach whenever he marches into a sporting arena. But lift him up on the rings and the years fade away.

Unsurprisingly he was one of the top performers in the strongman’s event and executed an array of manoeuvres which showed off his bulging muscles to great effect on the opening day of the Olympic test event.

LONDON, Jan 10 (Reuters) – The prospect of competing at a record sixth successive Olympics is not the only thing spurring Jordan Jovtchev to battle through the pain barrier this week. If the 38-year-old Bulgarian dynamo books his ticket to the London Games in July, it will also ensure the survival of his federation.

“I’m competing to support the Bulgarian gymnastics federation. If we have a gymnast who goes to the Olympic Games, then we will have a head coach, a masseuse, doctors going to the Olympics,” Jovtchev, elected president of the body in 2009, told Reuters on Tuesday after competing at the Olympic qualifying event in the North Greenwich Arena.

“If we don’t have a male going to the Olympics, it will be tough for the Bulgarian gymnastics federation to survive. (So keeping a lot of people employed) is part of it,” he added with a grin.

As a veteran of five Olympics and winner of four world titles, Jovtchev’s career is now spilling over into a third decade during which time he has been recognised as Bulgaria’s most famous and decorated gymnast.

Jovtchev arrived in London with a torn left shoulder muscle and a sore elbow but hid his pain well to perform the tumbles, twists and turns needed to impress the judges on the six apparatus.

With his distinctive salt-and-pepper hair, Jovtchev could easily be mistaken for an official or a coach whenever he marches into a sporting arena. But lift him up on the rings and the years fade away.

Unsurprisingly he was one of the top performers in the strongman’s event and executed an array of manoeuvres which showed off his bulging muscles to great effect on the opening day of the Olympic test event.

LONDON (Reuters) – Growing up in Ottawa and Toronto as the precocious child of Chinese immigrants, Patrick Chan always dreamt of the day he would whizz around for a victory lap in one of the world’s premier skating arenas draped in Canada’s Maple Leaf flag.

Once that vision came true in April in Moscow’s Khodynka Ice Palace, where he was crowned world champion after romping to victory by decimating the opposition with record scores, Chan discovered that the reality did not quite match up to his ideology.

As he approaches his 21st birthday, Chan feels more and more drawn towards his Chinese heritage.

“If you look at all the sports in China, the government is extremely involved and they are extremely proud of their athletes. People understand better what we do as skaters,” Chan told Reuters in a telephone interview ahead of this week’s Grand Prix Final in Quebec.

“Sometimes I feel we are not appreciated for how much work we put in. If my parents hadn’t emigrated from China and say I had skated for China, things would have been very different. My parents wouldn’t have had to make as much sacrifices as they have and there would be a lot more respect for what we do as figure skaters.

“I’m extremely well recognised in Korea just because of what I do on the ice and there is a lack of that in Canada because hockey is our sport and it will be for eternity. Figure skating has lost the draw and the attention (it used to have before).”

Whereas Elvis Stojko and Kurt Browning were treated as rockstars and showered with plaudits during the 1980s and 90s — when Canadian men glided to eight world titles in 11 years — the skating landscape for Chan in 2011 is very different.

LONDON (Reuters) – Growing up in Ottawa and Toronto as the precocious child of Chinese immigrants, Patrick Chan always dreamt of the day he would whizz around for a victory lap in one of the world’s premier skating arenas draped in Canada’s Maple Leaf flag.

Once that vision came true in April in Moscow’s Khodynka Ice Palace, where he was crowned world champion after romping to victory by decimating the opposition with record scores, Chan discovered that the reality did not quite match up to his ideology.

As he approaches his 21st birthday, Chan feels more and more drawn towards his Chinese heritage.

“If you look at all the sports in China, the government is extremely involved and they are extremely proud of their athletes. People understand better what we do as skaters,” Chan told Reuters in a telephone interview ahead of this week’s Grand Prix Final in Quebec.

“Sometimes I feel we are not appreciated for how much work we put in. If my parents hadn’t emigrated from China and say I had skated for China, things would have been very different. My parents wouldn’t have had to make as much sacrifices as they have and there would be a lot more respect for what we do as figure skaters.

“I’m extremely well recognized in Korea just because of what I do on the ice and there is a lack of that in Canada because hockey is our sport and it will be for eternity. Figure skating has lost the draw and the attention (it used to have before).”

Whereas Elvis Stojko and Kurt Browning were treated as rockstars and showered with plaudits during the 1980s and 90s — when Canadian men glided to eight world titles in 11 years — the skating landscape for Chan in 2011 is very different.

LONDON (Reuters) – The state of flux in men’s tennis could present Andy Murray with the perfect opportunity in 2012 to end Britain’s 76-year wait for a men’s grand slam champion, former British number one Greg Rusedski said.

With world number one Novak Djokovic under pressure to defend over 13,000 ranking points following his stupendous 2011 season, Rafa Nadal still reeling from six successive defeats by the Serb and Roger Federer on the wrong side of 30, the time is right for Murray to strike and become the first British male to lift a major since Fred Perry in 1936.

“Next year is going to be very important for Murray,” Rusedski told Reuters in a telephone interview ahead of the ATP World Tour Finals, where Murray has been drawn in the same group as Djokovic.

“This year he’s had his best year at the grand slams, he got to the final in Australia (losing to Djokovic) and three semis in Paris, Wimbledon and the (U.S.) Open. That shows he’s getting consistent.

“Coming up 2012 will be a very important year for him because Federer is already 30 plus so he’s in extra time.

“Djokovic cannot repeat the year (he’s just had when he won 10 titles including three majors) and Rafa most likely will win the French Open but this year he’s struggled from his high standards.

“So if you look at the opening for Murray, he’s gotta win one in the next year or so if he’s going to win a major.”