Paris 2024: Algeria’s Kaylia Nemour first African gymnast to win Olympic medal, clinches uneven bars gold

The 17-year-old’s fast-paced routine featuring a number of complex release-and-catch manoeuvres delighted the crowd who came to support a gymnast who had previously represented France.

Kaylia Nemour of Team Algeria celebrates winning the Gold medal during the Artistic Gymnastics Women’s Uneven Bars Final on day nine of the Olympic Games Paris 2024. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

Algeria’s Kaylia Nemour became the first African gymnast to win an Olympic medal when she secured the gold with a breathtaking routine on the asymmetric bars at the Paris Games on Sunday that wowed the crowd in Bercy Arena.

The 17-year-old’s fast-paced routine featuring a number of complex release-and-catch manoeuvres delighted the crowd who came to support a gymnast who had previously represented France.

Fans roared and jumped to their feet as soon as Nemour completed her dismount. She immediately broke down in tears as she handed Algeria their first medal of the Paris Olympics, with her performance scoring a staggering 15.700 points.

China’s Qiu Qiyuan, the 2023 world champion, took silver after trailing Nemour by only 0.2 of a point. U.S. gymnast Sunisa Lee claimed a second successive Olympic bronze on the apparatus with 14.800 points.

Nina Derwael of Belgium, the champion at the Tokyo Games, finished 0.034 of a point off the podium.