Qiao Ya

Who is Qiao Ya?

Qiao Ya is a retired Chinese artistic gymnast. She was the 1994 Asian Games All-Around Champion, a finalist on balance beam at the 1994 and 1995 World Gymnastics Championships, and competed at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta - where she placed 11th in the individual All-Around and 4th with the team during Team Finals.

Despite a disappointing showing at the 1994 American Cup, Qiao began her international career on a high: beating her more widely known teammate, Mo Huilan, to the individual All-Around title at the 1994 Asian Games. At these championships Qiao also placed first with her team and finished with a bronze medal on balance beam.

At the 1994 World Championships Qiao had moderate success - finishing 10th in the individual all-around and making the balance beam final. She qualified for the beam final in 4th place and was one of the favourites to challenge America's Shannon Miller for the title but took a fall during the final on her tumbling run, and ultimately finished in 7th place.

In 1995 Qiao competed at the 1995 World Championships - where the team took second place behind 1994 World Champions Romania. The Chinese team actually scored the highest in the Team Optionals portion of the competition but their disappointing scores during the Compulsories round prevented them from taking first place. During the team competition she did not compete on all four events and so did not qualify for the individual All-Around final. She did however qualify for the beam final but a balance break at the beginning of the routine resulted in an 8th place finish.