Based on the preliminary rounds of the competition, Tomita finished sixth in the all-around qualifier. Kōhei Uchimura and Koki Sakamoto finished ahead of him, ranking fourth and fifth respectively. Tomita fell on vault in the qualifier, thus finishing .050 behind his teammate, Koki Sakamoto. The top 24 gymnasts based on the preliminary results would qualify to compete in the all-around, because of the rule that only the top two qualifiers of each country would advance to the all-around competition, it appeared that Tomita would not continue to the all-around finals, with his teammates Uchimura and Sakamoto competing instead. However, Japanese head coach, Koji Gushiken, announced that Tomita would replace Sakamoto and compete in the all-around, owing to his experience.