Max Whitlock has claimed the successes that the UK’s gymnasts achieved at last year’s world championships in Glasgow can help them vault into the Olympic medals in Rio next week. The 23-year-old oozes confidence as he prepares for a multi-pronged assault on Rio, looking to better the two bronzes he landed at London 2012 and to capitalise on the historic pommel horse gold he took in Scotland nine months ago.
“That result’s in the bag and I’ve got it behind me which calms me down going into competitions now,” he confirms. “I want to keep the pressure off myself and onto the others as much as possible.”
They will fear him now, he knows. Whitlock was still a quiet teenager when he helped the British squad to a team bronze in London that saw Dan Purvis share in the accomplishment. The Scot has travelled here as a reserve, a shock omission in a cutthroat selection process that underlines the strength in depth that has rallied behind Louis Smith since his breakthrough bronze in Beijing eight years ago.
“The results we’ve had as a whole, we went into London 2012 hoping,” Whitlock confirms. “Now we’re expected to produce results. It’s a different kind of pressure. But we’re experienced at this now. We’ve been dealing with it for four years and hopefully we can capitalise on all the backing and support that comes with that success.”
After moving to Slovenia for a period to raise the bar on his own skills, Whitlock was coaxed back closer to home despite the prospect of lengthy round trips to his training base in Essex and his coach, then and now, Scott Hann. He took a Commonwealth silver in Delhi in 2010 as a prodigy but even then was a late convert to the dedication required to excel.
“When I was younger, I didn’t want much gymnastics,” he reveals. “I wasn’t one of those people who was so into it that I knew everything. And I’ve never been like that. It wasn’t until I got until about 17 years old, when I was entering European Championships, that I started watching other competitions and seeing what people did. I saw some of the Russians and Japanese guys and it started to inspire me to try to match what they were doing. But it’s ultimately been me and my coach and my family who have helped get me to this point.”
Now he may be the man to threaten Kohei Uchimura’s seven-year unbeaten run as the all-round king of gymnastics. What happened in Glasgow proved he is a man for the occasion. What happened then is now of no consequence at all.
“It didn’t sink in for a while,” he admits. “I’m not sure it ever does to be honest. It wasn’t long until I was back in the gym training hard. It’s tough to let any result you get sink in and that probably keeps us grounded as athletes. You still want more. It’s always great to think about what you’ve achieved and I sometimes do. It gives me a boost. But it’s all about pushing forward and looking for championships which is what keeps me motivated.”
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