The Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships[1][2] are the world championships for the sport of rhythmic gymnastics. The tournament is promoted and organized by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG). It is one of the three tournaments in rhythmic gymnastics officially organized by FIG, as well as the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Cup and the gymnastics competitions at the Olympic Games (in collaboration with the IOC and the federation of the country organising the Games).[3] The first edition of the World Championships was held in 1963, a time when the sport was known as modern gymnastics. The current program of the World Championships contemplates both individual and group performances. In even non-Olympic years and the year before the Olympics, a team event is also contested. Two events are not competed at the World Championships anymore: individual rope and free hands.
Historically rhythmic gymnastics has been dominated by Eastern European countries, especially the Soviet Union and Bulgaria. Following the fall of the Soviet Union, there was originally a clear dominance of Bulgaria and post-Soviet countries at the World Championships, namely Russia, Ukraine and Belarus but with other nations emerging, for example Italy, Israel and Spain. The only non-European nations to successfully achieve medal positions at the World Championships are Japan, China, North Korea and South Korea. Only five individual gymnasts (Sun Duk Jo, Myong Sim Choi, Mitsuru Hiraguchi, Son Yeon-jae, Kaho Minagawa) and three groups (Japan, North Korea and China) from outside Europe have won medals at the World Championships.[4]
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Main article: List of medalists at the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships |
Dominant nations include Soviet Union (as well as its subsequent independent states, namely Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Azerbaijan) and Bulgaria.
Last updated after the 2023 World Championships.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Russia | 113 | 57 | 35 | 205 |
| 2 |  Bulgaria | 70 | 61 | 54 | 185 |
| 3 |  Soviet Union | 50 | 43 | 27 | 120 |
| 4 |  Ukraine | 25 | 28 | 40 | 93 |
| 5 |  Italy | 16 | 24 | 14 | 54 |
| 6 |  Belarus | 10 | 28 | 41 | 79 |
| 7 |  Spain | 7 | 12 | 22 | 41 |
| 8 | Russian Gymnastics Federation [a] | 7 | 4 | 2 | 13 |
| 9 |  Germany | 6 | 4 | 1 | 11 |
| 10 | West Germany | 5 | 5 | 0 | 10 |
| 11 |  Czechoslovakia | 4 | 5 | 8 | 17 |
| 12 |  Greece | 3 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| 13 |  Israel | 2 | 9 | 8 | 19 |
| 14 |  Japan | 2 | 5 | 6 | 13 |
| 15 |  China | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 16 |  North Korea | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 |
| 17 |  Azerbaijan | 0 | 1 | 8 | 9 |
| 18 |  East Germany | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 19 |  France | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
 Hungary | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
 Slovenia | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| 22 |  Romania | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
 South Korea | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Totals (23 entries) | 322 | 293 | 285 | 900 | |
Boldface denotes active rhythmic gymnasts and highest medal count among all rhythmic gymnasts (including these who not included in these tables) per type.
| Rank | Rhythmic gymnast | Country | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dina Averina | Russia Russian Gymnastics Federation |
2017 | 2021 | 18 | 3 | 1 | 22 |
| 2 | Evgeniya Kanaeva | Russia |
2007 | 2011 | 17 | 1 | – | 18 |
| 3 | Yana Kudryavtseva | Russia |
2013 | 2015 | 13 | 3 | – | 16 |
| 4 | Maria Tolkacheva | Russia Russian Gymnastics Federation |
2014 | 2021 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 16 |
| 5 | Alexandra Timoshenko | Soviet Union |
1989 | 1991 | 10 | 2 | – | 12 |
| 6 | Olga Kapranova | Russia |
2003 | 2009 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
| 7 | Maria Petrova | Bulgaria |
1991 | 1996 | 9 | 9 | 4 | 22 |
| 8 | Olena Vitrychenko | Ukraine |
1992 | 1999 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 23 |
| 9 | Galima Shugurova | Soviet Union |
1969 | 1977 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 14 |
| 10 | Alina Kabaeva | Russia |
1999 | 2007 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 14 |
| Rank | Rhythmic gymnast | Country | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dina Averina | Russia Russian Gymnastics Federation |
2017 | 2021 | 15 | 3 | 1 | 19 |
| 2 | Evgeniya Kanaeva | Russia |
2009 | 2011 | 13 | 1 | – | 14 |
| 3 | Yana Kudryavtseva | Russia |
2013 | 2015 | 11 | 3 | – | 14 |
| 4 | Olena Vitrychenko | Ukraine |
1993 | 1999 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 18 |
| 5 | Galima Shugurova | Soviet Union |
1969 | 1977 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 14 |
| 6 | Maria Gigova |  Bulgaria |
1967 | 1973 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 13 |
| 7 | Maria Petrova | Bulgaria |
1992 | 1996 | 8 | 7 | 4 | 19 |
| 8 | Kateryna Serebrianska | Ukraine |
1993 | 1996 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 15 |
| 9 | Bianka Panova | Bulgaria |
1985 | 1989 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 11 |
| 10 | Alexandra Timoshenko | Soviet Union |
1989 | 1991 | 8 | 2 | – | 10 |
| Category | All events | Individual events |
|---|---|---|
| Most medals |
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