But the overwhelming favorite on the uneven bars, where she is Olympic champion, made no mistake on her signature event and hit the lead with a flying display that earned her the highest mark of the day.
The temperamental Russian diva's decision to compete on the beam rather than defend her world title on the vault backfired badly when she crashed to the mat following a combination of triple front somersaults.
The grim look on her face while she was trying to compose herself to complete the routine was in contrast to pictures of her radiant smile on billboards throughout the arena.
The judges also penalized Khorkina for a stumbled landing and awarded her a low mark of 8.625.
While Khorkina hushed the Fonix Hall fans into silence, Asian Games champion Nan Zhang of China brought the crowd to life with her spectacular sequence of tumbles and twists.
The Chinese gymnast staked her claim for the beam world title by pushing defending champion Andreea Raducan into third.
Nan was rewarded for her precision and artistry with a score of 9.625 while an unimpressive Raducan earned 9.312.
Russian Lyudmila Yeyova's solid performance helped her into second place above Raducan with 9.562.
Despite her dismal score, Khorkina scraped into Friday's semifinals, finishing 15th out of a possible 16 qualifiers. Her dazzling program on the uneven bars incorporating a series of release and catch moves was completed with a brilliant dismount that drew wild applause from the audience.
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