Reign of Japan’s ‘King Kohei’ Uchimura comes to an end

Final fling: Japan’s Kohei Uchimura falls from the horizontal bar during the men’s artistic gymnastics qualifying round. — AP

TOKYO: The reign of Japan’s “King Kohei” Uchimura, two-time Olympics all-around champion and holder of seven Olympic medals, came to an abrupt end when he failed to qualify for the finals and said he could no longer perform as he once did.

At his peak, Uchimura, 32, was one of the best male gymnasts of all time, winning every world and Olympic all-around title from 2009 to 2016 and becoming the first man in 44 years to top the individual all-around podium in back-to-back Olympics with a nail-biting final in Rio 2016.