2014 European Women's Artistic Gymnastics Championships
| 30th European Women's Artistic Gymnastics Championships | |
|---|---|
| Venue | Arena Armeec |
| Location | Sofia, Bulgaria |
| Dates | 12 to 18 May 2014 |
| Nations | Members of the European Union of Gymnastics |
The 30th European Women's Artistic Gymnastics Championships was held from 12 to 18 May 2014 at the Arena Armeec in Sofia, Bulgaria. They were held in conjunction with the 2014 European Men's Artistic Gymnastics Championships, which began 19 May in the same arena. It was the fourth time the senior and junior women's and men's European championships had been held in one location, which posed logistical difficulties for the organizers; there were also issues with installing the podiums and apparatuses.
288 gymnasts from 37 nations competed. The event functioned as a qualification for the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics and for the 2015 European Games. For the team event, teams consisted of up to five gymnasts, of whom four could compete on any apparatus, with the top three scores counting. A team could count fewer scores if necessary; for example, the senior Bulgarian team finished last after one gymnast, Valentina Rashkova, broke her leg performing her vault and they only had two gymnasts perform on the uneven bars.
The junior team from Great Britain won the first British junior team medal, a silver, behind Russia. Angelina Melnikova won the junior all-around as well as the balance beam final and silver on the uneven bars.
In the senior event, Romania won their second consecutive team title. In the apparatus finals, Giulia Steingruber won her second consecutive vault gold, while Anna Pavlova won the first European medal (silver) by a gymnast representing Azerbaijan. On the floor exercise, Vanessa Ferrari and Larisa Iordache tied for gold. On the uneven bars, Becky Downie won her first European title, while Maria Kharenkova, in her first year of senior eligibility, won the balance beam final. Iordache won the most medals overall, with her Romanian team medal and three event final medals, followed by Aliya Mustafina, with her Russian team medal and two individual event final medals, and Steingruber, who won bronze on the floor exercise in addition to her vault title.