Higgins books finals spot

Higgins collected 70.00 points to finish 11 out of 80 competitors to reach Friday’s final, in a competition dominated by Chinese athletes.

Olympic bronze medallist Dong Dong qualified in first place with 74.300 points, while three of his compatriots also occupy the top five positions.

Olympic champion Lu Chunlong is currently in third, while Russia’s Dimitry Ushakov is in second place, one point behind Dong.

"This was a fantastic performance from James,” said British Gymnastics performance director Tim Jones. “We are all delighted to have a representative in the Individual finals.

“It is important Great Britain is represented and making a mark on the world stage, and we hope this will be the catalyst for even more success leading into London 2012.
“James has nothing to lose and everything to gain when he competes in Friday's final.”
In the women’s event, there was no such luck for British champion Kat Driscoll as she claimed 64.800 points, good enough 18th place as she missed out on qualification by 1.5 points.

Olympic champion Wenna He of China is currently in first position with 70.200 points, closely followed by compatriot Shanshuan Huang.