Victory on parallel bars
Lukas Dauser is the first German gymnastics world champion since 2007
Lukas Dauser cheers with the Germany flag
© Virginia Mayo/ / DPA
Lukas Dauser has done it: He is the first German gymnast to win gold at a World Championships since 2007. His focus is already on the next big event.
After his excellent practice, Dauser shouted his joy and cheered wildly. Shi Cong from China came second with 15,066 points ahead of Japan’s Kaito Sugimoto (15,000).
Dauser had already received the highest scores of all starters in his three previous appearances in Antwerp in all-around competitions with 15.300, 15.366 and 15.400 points. The gymnast, who is considered a perfectionist and has lived in Halle/Saale for several years and trained with Hubert Brylok, still did not see himself as a top contender for the title. “In the final there are eight people, the best eight people in the world on this device. We are all half a point apart. Every small mistake can be decisive. That’s why I don’t see myself as a favorite,” he explained before the final.
Dauser’s goal: the Olympics in Paris
Until the World Championships, Dauser had fought his way through a low period. Because of a torn muscle in his shoulder, he was unable to train properly for a long time and had to miss the European Championships in April in Antalya, Turkey, and the German Championships in July in Düsseldorf. He also had to overcome a few difficulties in his private life after his wife was transferred to Hanover via the Bundeswehr and he therefore lived alone again for the first time in ten years and had a long-distance relationship.
The sports soldier with the rank of staff sergeant is initially only planning his career until the Olympic Games in Paris, for which he qualified with the team in Antwerp. Until then he wants to do everything he can, train well and be passionate and have fun. “That’s what counts for me in the next few months,” explained Dauser