SCOTLAND'S Daniel Purvis claimed a World Cup Series medal for the second successive weekend in front of a packed Emirates Arena in Glasgow yesterday.
But the 22-year-old had to settle for bronze to add to the silver he won in Stuttgart, despite having led until the final rotation.
Olympic all-around runner-up Marcel Nguyen of Germany took gold and Kazuhito Tanaka of Japan silver. Purvis was disappointed with the outcome, but was pleased with his performance.
After a ropey opener on floor which saw him fall on his final tumbling pass, he went from strength to strength, pulling off an impressive performance on the pommel horse and blistering routine on rings. Strong scores on vault and parallel bars saw Purvis stay out in front but he was usurped at the 11th hour in the high bar.
Nguyen boasts one of the most difficulty-packed routines in the world in that event, but Purvis shouldn't allow the German's victory to detract from his own gutsy display.
It capped off a stellar year in which he won a third consecutive British senior all-around title, team gold at the European Championships and a historic Olympic team bronze at London 2012. "On a personal level I'm disappointed, but after floor, where I never normally fall, it was a case of picking myself back up which I did," Purvis said. "In the end I finished in the top three so I'm relatively happy.
"It's the last competition of the season and I enjoyed it. I can go back to the gym now, hopefully work on my high bar and get it up there for next year.
"He [Nguyen] is a great gymnast. He came second in the Olympics so he was always going to be hard to beat. I was just happy to be able to rival him today."
The third round of the 2012-13 FIG Artistic Gymnastics All-Around World Cup Series, the sell-out event in Glasgow marked the sport's first major international competition on British soil since London 2012. "The atmosphere was amazing," Purvis said. "The crowd got behind us. It was a long competition but they kept on supporting us. I'm really thankful for the crowd."
Kristian Thomas fared less well than his fellow Team GB member. After a storming start on floor to score 15.800 and lead the field, two falls on the pommel horse saw him tumble down the rankings.
The 23-year-old never quite recovered and, after failing to successfully land his attempt on vault and an error on high bar, he finished the day down in seventh.
In the women's competition Elizabeth Price, the US Olympic reserve in London, dominated the field to take gold. A rising star among the American squad, the 16-year-old is one of the strongest vaulters in the world and posted the top score of 15.900 on that apparatus.
Her other three pieces were no less impressive with 14.966 on A-bars, 14.033 on beam and 14.266 on floor, making Price the highest-ranked finisher on each.
Elisabeth Seitz of Germany took silver and her compatriot Kim Bui the bronze.
Rebecca Tunney, the reigning British senior champion, showed she could hold her own among the world-class field by finishing a credible fifth. Had it not been for a fall on beam, the 16-year-old would likely have found herself among the medals.
Fellow Briton Niamh Rippin came sixth.
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