Angelina Melnikova caps return by edging Leanne Wong for gold at the world gymnastics championships

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Angelina Melnikova's return to international gymnastics after a three-year hiatus ended with the Russian in a familiar spot: atop the podium.

The 25-year-old star edged American Leanne Wong for the all-around title at the world championships on Thursday, capping a long climb back to the top after Melnikova and other Russian athletes were barred from competing because of Russia's war with Ukraine.

Melnikova recovered from a fall off the balance beam in the second rotation to post a total of 55.066, just ahead of Wong at 54.966. Zhang Qingying of China used a brilliant beam routine to earn bronze at 54.633. Kaylia Nemour of Algeria was fourth.

The result — Melnikova in first and Wong in second — was a repeat of the 2021 world championships, where Melnikova topped Wong for the crown just two months after leading Russia to gold and earning a bronze in the all-around at the pandemic-delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Plenty has happened since then. Melnikova, who briefly dabbled in politics before removing herself from consideration in an effort to maintain the “neutral athlete” designation under International Gymnastics Federation guidelines, didn't compete outside of Russia for more than three years.

Wong, a 22-year-old from Kansas, has spent the last four years as a fixture on the U.S. national team while also competing collegiately at Florida, juggling myriad business interests and studying to become a doctor.

Melnikova easily topped qualifying earlier in the week. The finals, however, were a taut if error-riddled affair in which her second world title wasn't assured until her floor exercise score of 13.433 flashed at the end of the final rotation.

The only contender who avoided a major mistake was Wong, who qualified in 10th but found herself in a position to become the latest in a line of American world champions that includes Simone Biles, Jordyn Wieber and Morgan Hurd.

Wong gambled on vault in her final rotation, opting for the more difficult of the two vaults she does in competition. Her Cheng was excellent, and her score of 14.466 was the best of the day on the event.

Melnikova, who struggled on floor exercise during qualifying, appeared to have both of her heels land out of bounds during her first tumbling pass, a major deduction. She recovered to put together a clean and dynamic routine and her score included just a one-tenth deduction for stepping out, indicating judges believed only one foot landed out of bounds.

Had the judges ruled that both of her feet stepped onto the colored carpet that serves as the border, she would have been docked three-tenths of a point, which would have put Wong in first.

Instead, Melnikova gasped when her score was revealed before embracing her coaches to cap off an emotional return for Russian gymnastics on the world stage, in spirit if technically not in name.

Zhang was a surprise bronze medalist, the first by China in the all-around at worlds since Tang Xijing was runner-up to Biles in 2019. Zhang's 14.833 on beam was more than 1.2 points better than any other competitor on the apparatus, which serves as a test of nerves as much as it is a test of skills, a staggering gap.

That performance helped her slip past Nemour and into third.

Nemour, just 18, remains a marvel on uneven bars, where her intricate and technically demanding routine is the best being done on any apparatus by any active female gymnast.

Yet Nemour also stepped out of bounds on her vault, earning a three-tenths deduction that proved to be the difference.

American Dulcy Caylor, 17, qualified in fifth but saw her chances of earning a medal disappear after a fall near the end of her uneven bars routine. Caylor finished 13th.

Asia D'Amato of Italy was fifth, an impressive return after she missed the 2024 Paris Olympics because of a knee injury and had to watch from afar as her teammates earned a stunning silver without her.

AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games

Zhang Qingying of China celebrates as she competes in the Women's All-Around Final during the 53rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Individual Neutral Athlete Angelina Melnikova competes in the Women's All-Around Final during the 53rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Medalists Leanne Wong of United States with silver, left, Individual Neutral Athlete Angelina Melnikova with gold, center, and Zhang Qingying of China, with bronze, right, after the Women's All-Around Final during the 53rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Individual Neutral Athlete Angelina Melnikova hugs a team member after she wins gold in the Women's All-Around Final during the 53rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Individual Neutral Athlete Angelina Melnikova holds the gold medal after winning the Women's All-Around Final during the 53rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Portland, which is welcoming a WNBA team back to the city after 24 years, selected veteran forward Bridget Carleton with the first pick in Friday's expansion draft.

Guard Julie Allemand, who played last season for the Los Angeles Sparks, was selected by the Toronto Tempo with its first pick.

The Tempo won a coin flip and opted to take the sixth pick in the college draft on April 13 over the top pick in the expansion draft. So Portland went first on Friday and will have the seventh pick in the college draft.

Carleton, who has played for the last seven seasons for the Minnesota Lynx and averaged 6.5 points and 3.6 rebounds a game last season off the bench, was an unrestricted free agent.

“Once we finalized our process, and zoomed in on Bridget, and knew we had our first expansion pick, it was obvious we did not want to have Toronto hold our destiny in their hands," Portland general manger Vanja Cernivec said.

Allemand averaged 5.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 5 assists in 34 games last season.

“This group gives us the ability to compete from day one while continuing to build, and embraces the opportunity to help shape something new in a new country as Canada’s first WNBA team,” Toronto general manager Monica Wright Rogers said.

The league's teams protected five players apiece ahead of the expansion draft but those lists were not made public, leading to speculation about which players were available.

On Wednesday, the Chicago Sky announced trades with the Tempo and the Fire, which prevented the expansion teams from selecting Sky players. In exchange, the Fire got the No. 17 pick in the college draft and the No. 26 pick went to the Tempo.

The expansion draft had two rounds, with up to six picks for each team in each round. The teams alternated picks, with the Tempo picking first in the second round after the Fire got the first overall selection.

Teams could only lose two players to the expansion draft. If a player was taken in the first round, a second player from that same franchise couldn't be taken until the second round.

Following Allemand, the Tempo selected center Nyara Sabally from the Liberty, guard Marina Mabrey from the Sun, forward Aaliya Nye from the Aces, guard Lexi Held from the Mercury, and forward Maria Conde from the Valkyries.

In the second round the Tempo selected forward Maria Kliundikova from the Lynx, center Adja Kane from the Liberty, center Nikolina Milic from the Sun, guard Kitija Laksa from the Mercury, and guard Kristy Wallace from the Fever.

After Carleton, the Portland Fire selected guard Carla Leite from the Valkyries, center Luisa Geiselsoder from the Stars, forward Emily Engstler from the Mystics, guard Maya Caldwell from the Dream and forward Chloe Bibby from the Fever.

In the second round Portland took guard Haley Jones from the Wings, forward Nyadiew Puoch from the Dream, guard Sara Ashlee Barker from the Sparks, guard Sug Sutton from the Mystics and guard Nika Muhl from the Storm.

Mabry was also an unrestricted free agent. Each team was allowed to pick only one unrestricted free agent.

The teams still do not know when free agency will open. More than 80% of the players are free agents this year, as many players have expiring contracts or opted out of the previous collective bargaining agreement.

The college draft is set for April 13 and training camps open on April 19. The season will start on May 8.

The Tempo and Fire join the WNBA as the league's 14th and 15th teams. Portland previously had a WNBA team, also called the Fire, that played from 2000 to 2002.

AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Toronto Tempo general manager Monica Wright Rogers, right, and assistant general manager Eli Horowitz pose for a photo after speaking to media following the WNBA Expansion Draft in Toronto, Friday, April 3, 2026. (Sammy Kogan/The Canadian Press via AP)

FILE - Minnesota Lynx forward Bridget Carleton (6) dribbles the ball up court against the Phoenix Mercury during the second half of Game 2 of a WNBA basketball playoff semifinals series Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Matt Krohn, File)