Erika Pinxten

Erika Pinxten (born 24 February 2007) ^[1] is a Belgian artistic gymnast.

She currently trains at Topsportcentrum in Ghent, Belgium, with her coach Marjorie Heuls. ^{[2] [3]}

Erika Pinxten
Born	(2007-02-24) 24 February 2007 (age 18) Hasselt, Belgium
Gymnastics career
Discipline	Women's artistic gymnastics
Country represented	Belgium
Gym	Topsportschool Gent
Head coach(es)	Marjorie Heuls
Medal record Representing   Belgium Women's artistic gymnastics FIG World Cup Event 1st 2nd 3rd World Cup 0 1 2

Early life

Erika Pinxten began gymnastics at the gym Sta Paraat Hasselt. ^{[4] [5]}

She speaks Dutch and English. ^[3]

Youth and junior career

2017

Pinxten's first competition was in 2017 at the Wase Gymcup in Melsele, Belgium, at the Espoir (youth) level. She finished 32nd in the all-around event. ^[6]

2019

Pinxten continued to compete at the Espoir level in 2019. At the Belgian championships, she won gold in the all-around, gold on the balance beam, silver on uneven bars, and silver in the floor exercise. ^[7] At the Flanders International Team (FIT) challenge, she won bronze on uneven bars. ^[8]

2021

In 2021, Erika Pinxten competed for the first time at the junior level. She competed at the FIT challenge where she placed 18th in the all-around event. ^[9] She competed at the Elite Gym Massilia in Marseille, France, where she placed 26th in the all-around as she only competed uneven bars and balance beam. ^[10]

2022

Pinxten competed at the DTB Pokal Team Challenge in Stuttgart, Germany, placing 15th in the all-around, 5th on uneven bars, and 4th on floor exercise. ^[11] She competed at the City of Jesolo Trophy, in Jesolo, Italy, where she placed 18th in the all-around, and 7th on balance beam. ^[12] She competed again at the Belgian championships, winning bronze on vault, bronze, on floor exercise, and gold on balance beam. She did compete uneven bars. ^[13] She competed at Tournoi International in Combs-la-ville, France, winning bronze on the balance beam, and silver in the team event with her teammates Chloe Baert, and Yelena Devreker. ^[14]

Her last competition as a junior was at the Top Gym Tournament in Charleroi, Belgium, where she won bronze on uneven bars, gold on balance beam, and bronze in the team event with her teammates Marie de Smedt, Louise Dupont, and Zofia Kopczynski. ^[15]

Senior career

2023

In 2023, Erika Pinxten began competing as a senior with her first competition being the DTB Pokal Team Challenge, where she placed 39th in the all-around and won silver in the team event with Maellyse Brassart, Fien Enghels, Aberdeen O'Driscoll, and Jutta Verkest. ^[16]

She competed at the Cairo World Cup, winning bronze on the uneven bars and on the balance beam. ^[17]

At the Belgian Championships, she won gold in the all-around and on the balance beam, silver on vault and uneven bars, and bronze on the floor exercise. ^[18]

Pinxten competed at the World Championships in Antwerp where she finished as first reserve with a score of 49.832 in the all-around event just behind Rifda Irfanaluthfi of Indonesia. ^{[19] [20]} With the absence of Lisa Vaelen and Nina Derwael, and with Maellyse Brassart restricted to two events due to injury, ^[21] Belgium failed to qualify a team spot for the 2024 Paris Olympics. ^{[22] [23]}

2024

In 2024, Pinxten, along with other female Belgian gymnasts, competed through the World Cup series to attempt qualification for the 2024 Paris Olympics. ^[24]

She competed at the Cairo World Cup where she won silver on balance beam just behind Nina Derwael, and placed 5th in the all-around. She then competed at the Cottbus World Cup where she placed 7th in the all-around. However, she withdrew from the Baku World Cup due to back problems. ^[25] Pinxten did not attend the Doha World Cup, with the Belgian gymnastics federation Gymfed citing the decision to focus on European championships. ^[26] As a result, Ting Hua-tien of Chinese Taipei qualified through balance beam to obtain an Olympic berth instead. ^[27]

At the 2024 European championships in Rimini, Italy, Pinxten did not qualify for event finals and placed 30th in the all-around. ^[28] Fellow Belgian Maellyse Brassart placed 10th and qualified for the Olympics, having the highest all-around score of any non-qualified gymnast. ^[29]

Pinxten competed at the Hagueneau Friendly in Haguenau, France, with her best scores placing 6th in the all-around and on uneven bars. ^[30]

2025

Pinxten only competed in one competition in 2025. At the Rotterdam Friendly, she won silver on balance beam and bronze in the team event. ^[31]

Competitive history

Competitive history ofErika Pinxten at the espoir level

Year	Event	Team	AA	VT	UB	BB	FX
2017	Wase Gymcup		32
2019	Belgian Championships			4
	FIT Challenge		10	20		5	15

Competitive history of Erika Pinxten at the junior level

Year	Event	Team	AA	VT	UB	BB	FX
2021	FIT Challenge	5	18
	Elite Gym Massalia	6	26
2022	DTB Pokal Team Challenge	7	15		5		4
	City of Jesolo Trophy	7	18			7
	Belgian Championships		9
	Tournoi International		13
	Top Gym Tournament		11

Competitive history of Erika Pinxten at the senior level

Year	Event	Team	AA	VT	UB	BB	FX
2023	DTB Pokal Team Challenge		39
	Cairo World Cup
	Belgian Championships
	World Championships
2024	Cairo World Cup						5
	Cottbus World Cup					7
	European Championships		30
	Haguenau Friendly		6	10	6	8	9
2025	Rotterdam Friendly		11				4

References

1. "Erika Pinxten". The Gymternet. 2023-05-08. Retrieved 2025-12-08.
2. "Ten Women to watch". Gymfed. Archived from the original on 2024-07-22. Retrieved 2025-12-08.
3. "PINXTEN Erika - FIG Athlete Profile". www.gymnastics.sport. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
4. stpadmin (2023-08-03). "De weg naar de top!". Sta Paraat Hasselt (in Dutch). Retrieved 2025-12-08.
5. lutje (2022-12-08). "IN BEELD: Topsport-gymnastiekhal in Runkst". Specials (in Dutch). Retrieved 2025-12-09.
6. Lauren (2017-10-30). "2017 Wase Gymcup Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
7. "2019 Belgian Championships Results". The Gymternet. 2019-06-08. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
8. "2019 FIT Challenge Results". The Gymternet. 2019-06-10. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
9. "2021 FIT Challenge Results". The Gymternet. 2021-07-01. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
10. Lauren (2021-11-15). "2021 Elite Gym Massilia Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
11. Lauren (2022-03-20). "2022 DTB Pokal Team Challenge Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
12. Lauren (2022-04-11). "2022 City of Jesolo Trophy Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
13. Lauren (2022-05-30). "2022 Belgian Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
14. Lauren (2022-11-16). "2022 Tournoi International Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
15. Lauren (2022-11-29). "2022 Top Gym Tournament Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
16. Lauren (2023-03-21). "2023 DTB Pokal Team Challenge Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
17. Lauren (2023-05-01). "2023 Cairo World Cup Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
18. Lauren (2023-05-30). "2023 Belgian Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
19. Lauren (2023-10-11). "2023 World Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
20. CM (2023-10-16). "Get To Know The Paris Olympic Qualifiers (2023 World All-Around Qualification Round)". Gymnastics Cool Facts. Retrieved 2025-12-08.
21. Belga, Belga (2025-12-06). "Mondiaux de gymnastique artistique - Malgré les absentes, l'équipe féminine veut saisir sa chance à Anvers devant son public". La Libre.be (in French). Retrieved 2025-12-09.
22. "L'équipe belge féminine ne parvient pas à se qualifier pour les Jeux Olympiques 2024". RTL Info (in French). 2023-10-02. Retrieved 2025-12-08.
23. "Mondiaux de gymnastique : déception chez les gymnastes belges, non qualifiées pour les JO de Paris - RTBF Actus". RTBF (in French). Retrieved 2025-12-08.
24. "GAF-GAM : La sélection pour la Coupe du Monde de Cottbus dévoilée". ffgym.be (in French). Retrieved 2025-12-09.
25. "Erika Pinxten mist Wereldbeker in Bakoe door rugproblemen, Nina Derwael en Maellyse Brassart tekenen wel present". Nieuwsblad (in Flemish). 2024-03-04. Retrieved 2025-12-08.
26. Gymfed. "World Cup Doha". Gymfed. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
27. "Taiwanese gymnast wins gold in run-up to Paris Olympics - Taipei Times". www.taipeitimes.com. 2024-04-22. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
28. Lauren (2024-05-06). "2024 European Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
29. Gunston, Jo (2024-05-06). "European Gymnastics Championships 2024: three unforgettable moments from Rimini". Olympics.com. Retrieved 2025-12-08.
30. Lauren (2024-07-07). "2024 Haguenau Friendly Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
31. Lauren (2025-11-30). "2025 Rotterdam Friendly Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2025-12-09.