Helena Ripken
Birth date18 July 2006 (age 20)
DisciplineRG
Show-medalsyes
ClubBerliner TSC
Natlteam2022-
Birth placeBerlin
AssistcoachCamilla Patriarca
ChoreographerGocha Budagashvili
HeadcoachCamilla Pfeffer
FormercoachAnzhelika Lepekha

Helena Ripken (born 18 July 2006) is a German rhythmic gymnast.[1] She represents Germany as part of the senior group.

Biography

In June 2018 Ripken won bronze among 12 years old gymnasts behind Hannah Vester and Anna Schenenko.[2] The following she won bronze, behind Darja Varfolomeev and Schenenko, at the German Championships in the 2006 botn juniors category.[3]

In November 2021 she participated in the Children's Gymnastics Day in Hamburg.[4] In December she helped Berlin TSC take silver in the first ever German club championship.[5]

Senior

In 2022 she took part in the qualifications for the European Championships, being 5th in the first and 3rd in the second competition.[6][7][8] In May Helena made her World Cup debut in Portimão, being 24th in the All-Around, 35th with hoop, 34th with ball, 23rd with clubs and 11th with ribbon.[9][10] In June she competed in the stage in Pesaro, finishing 23rd overall, 23rd with hoop, 25th with ball, 24th with clubs and 17th with ribbon.[11][12] She then was 4th in the All-Around, 4th with clubs, 5th with ribbon, and won bronze with hoop and ball at nationals.[13][14][15][16][17] In August she came in 6th place in the second stage of the qualification for the World Championships.[18]

Ripken moved to Fellbach in 2024 to join the national senior group.[19] In 2025 she became a starter in the group, debuting at the Gymnastik International, winning gold in the All-Around and with 5 ribbons.[20][21] Then she competed the World Cup in Baku where Germany was 10th in the All-Around, 12th with 5 ribbon and 7th with 3 balls & 2 hoops.[22][23][24] A week later, in Tashkent, they took 4th place overall, 5th with 5 ribbons and 7th in the mixed event.[25][26][27] She was then selected for the European Championships in Tallinn, there the group was 10th in the All-Around and won an historical bronze medal, the first ever in the competition for a German group, with 3 balls & 2 hoops.[28][29][30][31] In August, Ripken made her senior World Championships debut in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, alongside Melanie Dargel, Anja Kosan, Olivia Falk, Anna-Maria Shatokhin and Emilia Wickert, where they took 8th place in all-around. Together with Darja Varfolomeev and Anastasia Simakova, they won the gold medal in team competition.[32]

In 2026 the group started its season at the World Cup in Sofia, winning silver in the all-around. They were 5th in 5 balls and 4th in 3 hoops + 4 clubs final.[33] At the World Challenge Cup in Portimão she won silver in the All-Around and with 5 balls as well as gold with 3 hoops & 4 clubs.[34]

References

  1. ^ "RIPKEN Helena - FIG Athlete Profile". www.gymnastics.sport. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  2. ^ "RSG-Bundesfinale / DSM in Düsseldorf" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2018-06-03. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  3. ^ "Emeli Erbes überragt Deutsche Meisterschaften" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2019-06-24. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  4. ^ "Kinder Joy of Moving Tag des Kinderturnens" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2021-11-14. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  5. ^ "DTL Finale Rhythmische Sportgymnastik" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  6. ^ "2022 European Championships 1st Qualification"
  7. ^ "2022 European Championships 2nd Qualification"
  8. ^ "RSG-Weltcup und EM-Qualifikation" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2022-04-24. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  9. ^ "Je zweimal Gold und Silber für Varfolomeev" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2022-05-29. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  10. ^ "2022 Portimão World Cup"
  11. ^ "Kolosov verpasst Weltcup-Medaille knapp" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2022-06-05. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  12. ^ "2022 Pesaro World Cup"
  13. ^ "Die Finals 2022 All-Around"
  14. ^ "Die Finals 2022 Hoop Final"
  15. ^ "Die Finals 2022 Ball Final"
  16. ^ "DEUTSCHE MEISTERSCHAFTEN RHYTHMISCHE GYMNASTIK 2022 | GYMmedia.de". www.gymmedia.de. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  17. ^ "Varfolomeev dominiert Gerätefinals der RSG" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2022-06-25. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  18. ^ "Varfolomeev und Kolosov dominieren" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2022-08-12. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  19. ^ "Neue YouTube-Serie" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2025-03-14. Retrieved 2025-06-11.
  20. ^ Zeitung, Stuttgarter. "RSG, Turnier in Schmiden: Gymnastik International: Premiere für die neue Nationalgruppe" (in German). stuttgarter-zeitung.de. Retrieved 2025-06-09.
  21. ^ "2025 Gymnastik International"
  22. ^ "2025 Baku World Cup Result Book"
  23. ^ "Weitere Finalplätze für DTB-Gymnastinnen" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2025-04-19. Retrieved 2025-06-09.
  24. ^ "Zweimal Weltcup-Gold für Varfolomeev" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2025-04-20. Retrieved 2025-06-09.
  25. ^ "Tashkent World Cup Result Book"
  26. ^ "Mehrkampf-Silber für Varfolomeev" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2025-04-26. Retrieved 2025-06-09.
  27. ^ "Dreimal Gold für Varfolomeev" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2025-04-27. Retrieved 2025-06-09.
  28. ^ "2025 European Championships Group"
  29. ^ "Tallinn wird zur Bühne für Europas Beste" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2025-06-04. Retrieved 2025-06-09.
  30. ^ "Ball/Reifen Finale für die Gruppe" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2025-06-07. Retrieved 2025-06-09.
  31. ^ "RSG-Gruppe gewinnt historisches EM-Bronze" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2025-06-08. Retrieved 2025-06-09.
  32. ^ "2025 World Championships Team results" (PDF)
  33. ^ "Silbermedaille beim RSG-Weltcup in Sofia" (in German). dtb.de. 30 March 2026. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  34. ^ "RSG World Challenge Cup gastiert in Portimão" (in German). www.dtb.de. 2026-05-13. Retrieved 2026-05-17.