Prince left in gymnastics wake

Danielle Prince came to Rio to get a taste of international competition, and will leave knowing Australia has a long way to go to be competitive on rhythmic gymnastics world stage.

With the 2018 Commonwealth Games her end goal, Prince arrived in Rio as Oceania's quota entrant knowing experience and a clutch of memories were about the best she could hope to walk away with.

And so it proved, with the Brisbane 24-year-old performing admirably - yet clearly not in the same league in a sport dominated by European nations.

Of the 26 artists to take part in the all-around competition, Prince finished 25th on three apparatus, and in a tie for 24th with the clubs for a total score of 61.06.

But adding to the experience she gained is the confidence she was the only commonwealth gymnast in the field - a huge plus heading to what will be her final international competition at Gold Coast 2018.

"All I wanted to do was do the routine to the best of my ability, and one error on hoop and the rest were up there for me," Prince said.

"To perform in that arena and under that pressure as well is an incredible experience."

Russia dominated qualifying with Margarita Mamun and Yana Kudryavtseva set to fight it out for gold in Saturday's individual all-around final.