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As Daiki Hashimoto crossed his hands on the pommel horse, in a routine he had practiced countless times to the point of perfection, the defending Olympic champion in the individual all-around felt his grip loosen. From a golden Olympics in Tokyo three years ago, where he was Japan’s face of the Covid games, Hashimoto’s return to Paris was quickly turning into a nightmare. Having crashed out in qualifying for the high bar final on Saturday, surrendering the defence of one of his individual titles, another slip looked to have cost Japan in their bid for all-around team gold. By the halfway stage, the eight-time champions were fifth, lagging behind China.
