(Reuters)
Updated: 2007-09-01 20:46

STUTTGART, Germany - Holders China set the early pace in qualifying at the world championships on Saturday, using a spectacular array of skill from newcomers and champions to build a convincing team lead.

Cheng Fei

All-round champion, Italian Vanessa Ferrari, showed she was not going to give up her title lightly by shooting to the top of the individual standings.

Four of the Chinese gymnasts were appearing at their first world championships but their lack of experience did not show and their points total of 241.175 was higher than they managed at last year's event when they qualified in second place. Keen to impress the judges before hosting next year's Olympics in Beijing, China started on the uneven bars.

Newcomer Yang Yilin, who turned 15 less than a week ago, produced a series of slick moves and daring catches to notch the session's best score on that apparatus.

Fellow first-timer Li Shanshan jumped and turned confidently on the balance beam to impress the judges for 16.325 after Cheng Fei and Xiao Sha had fallen.

Last year's floor and vault champion Cheng used the same power and agility that earned her the titles to score a 15.950 on the vault and 15.375 on the floor.

China were among the first to perform and their high score means they can relax while their main competitors play catch-up.

The top eight teams qualify for the team final and the top 12 nations earn places at next year's Olympics. Last year's silver and bronze medallists, the United States and Russia, do not take to the apparatus until Sunday, while Romania are in action later on Saturday.

Despite the strong Chinese team performance, it was Italy's Ferrari who topped the individual standings with 60.550 points, 0.850 ahead of Yang. The 17-year-old's floor routine got off to a bad start when she landed outside the area after her first tumble sequence. She recovered to delight the crowd with a lively routine that oozed charm.