Nazar Chepurny Reveals His Top Rivals Ahead of European Gymnastics Championships

Exclusive Interview with Nazar Chepurny

According to Главком: In a recent interview, European champion in artistic gymnastics Nazar Chepurny discussed his main competitors in the vault event and shared his plans for the European Championships, scheduled for August 2026 in Zagreb. He emphasized his work on a vault with a difficulty rating of 5.6, noting that only a handful of gymnasts worldwide can execute such complex routines.

Who Are Chepurny's Key Rivals?

Chepurny singled out British gymnasts Jake Jarman and Harry Hepworth as his primary challengers, pointing out that one of them performs a vault with 3.5 twists-an impressive feat. He also mentioned reigning world champion on vault Carlos Yulo from the Philippines, along with Iran's Mahdi Olfati and Armenia's Artur Davtyan.

Chepurny stated: 'In a word, the competition in vaulting is insane.'

He further highlighted the strong presence of elite gymnasts from China and Japan on the international stage.

Chepurny was named Ukraine's Best Athlete of February 2026 by the National Olympic Committee. He earned this honor after winning gold at the World Cup stage in Cottbus, along with another gold in Baku and a bronze in Doha. He also secured the overall 2026 World Cup title in vault, having competed in three of the season's five events.

When asked about developing new elements, Chepurny remarked:

'When it comes to new vault elements, at this point you can only refine what already exists… Inventing something completely new? In my opinion, that's science fiction.'

He stressed that executing a 5.6-difficulty vault requires immense effort and countless hours of training, and he hopes to perform this demanding element at the European Championships.

Chepurny's personal coach, Hennadiy Sartynskyi, was also recognized as the Best Coach of February 2026. Last year, Chepurny excelled on parallel bars, but this year his success has come in vault-a clear sign of his career growth and versatility.

Chepurny's achievements in vault underscore the high level of competition not only in Ukraine but globally. With the Zagreb championships on the horizon, refining his routines and preparing for fierce opposition will be critical. The rising challenge from top international gymnasts pushes Chepurny to train at his maximum, which could define his future performances.

In addition to discussing his main rivals, Chepurny reflected on the impact of losing a key team leader, which has influenced the dynamics within the Ukrainian gymnastics squad. For a deeper insight into how this loss has affected the team's performance and the remarkable jumps of his competitors, read more about it here.