Amanda Yap reaches Asian Games beam final and finishes sixth

Amanda Yap arrived at the 2026 Asian Games with a clear goal: make the balance beam final. The Singaporean gymnast had already won two major silver medals, but she approached her debut in Japan as a new test rather than an assured shot at the podium. On 25 September, she reached the final and placed sixth with a score of 13.033. 817

Why she kept expectations in check

Yap’s results had given her reason to trust her ability on beam. In 2025, she became the first Singaporean gymnast to qualify for a World Championships final and finished sixth. She followed that with balance beam silver at the SEA Games in December, then another silver at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in July 2026—Singapore’s first gymnastics medal at that competition since 2014. 67

Those achievements also brought pressure. After the World Championships, Yap said that expectations of gold weighed on her before the SEA Games. Ahead of the Asian Games, she focused instead on performing well against a strong field and, if possible, reaching another final. 1420

Training through a back injury

A back injury disrupted Yap’s preparation and forced her to modify her training programme. A report before the Games said she was gradually returning to her usual routine, but the available accounts do not specify which exercises she changed or how much training she missed. 20

Yap had previously described handling nerves at the Commonwealth Games by trying to enjoy the experience and perform as she did in training. Her sixth-place Asian Games finish delivered the final she had hoped for, and she subsequently said the debut gave her experience and confidence ahead of October’s World Championships. 121317