Paris 2024 Olympics: Who is part of the Team GB gymnastics team? Why is Max Whitlock not competing on all apparatuses?
By Emma James
Published 29/07/2024 at 18:09 GMT+1
Team GB are among eight of the countries competing in the men’s artistic gymnastics team final this evening, but Great Britain’s most successful gymnast, Max Whitlock, will not be competing in all four of the apparatuses. The men's artistic gymnastics team final begins at 16:30 UK time on Monday, July 29 live on Eurosport and discovery+. Here is all you need to know about Whitlock and Team GB.
'Everyone can just be really happy' - Whitlock 'massively positive' on Team GB
Video credit: TNT Sports
Team GB will be among eight of the countries competing to win the men’s artistic gymnastics team final, but there will be a familiar name missing from several of the apparatuses.
The team final, which kicks off today at 16:30 UK time, will see the world’s best gymnasts compete on four apparatuses featuring routines on the pommel horse, rings, vault and floor.
Team GB finished third in the team results during qualifying, with China and Japan completing the top three, and they’ll be looking to better their result from the Tokyo 2020 Games, where they just missed out on the podium.
Who will feature for Team GB during the men’s gymnastics team final?
There will be a couple of familiar faces within the Team GB ranks, with Max Whitlock competing in his fourth Olympic Games, while Joe Fraser made his debut in Tokyo starring in the team and individual all-round final, coming ninth.
There will also be a number of individuals making their Olympic debut this year, with Team GB opting to bring a new generation of gymnasts to the international stage.
20-year-old Harry Hepworth helped Great Britain finish second in the 2024 European Championships, while promising 22-year-old Luke Whitehouse claimed gold in the 2023 and 2024 European Championships in the floor event.
Jake Jarman, 22, rounds off the team with already an impressive collection of medals. Having won four golds in the 2022 Commonwealth Games for the vault, floor exercise, all-round event and team final, Jarman has continued to go from strength to strength, picking up medals in all colours during the European and World Championships over the course of three years.
Who is Max Whitlock?
A household name in the Team GB side having become Britain's most decorated gymnast of all time, Whitlock announced Paris 2024 would be his final Olympics.
The four time Olympian previously stepped away from the sport after winning gold in the pommel horse in Tokyo to focus on his mental health, but returned in time to attempt his third consecutive gold medal in the apparatus.
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Max Whitlock of Team Great Britain celebrates after winning gold in the Men's Pommel Horse Final on day nine of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Gymnastics Centre on August 01, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Image credit: Getty Images
Why will Max Whitlock feature on only three apparatuses?
As part of the team final, Whitlock will only feature on the pommel horse, parallel bars and horizontal bars.
Every gymnast must feature in order to qualify for the individual and team event, but should they want to reach the all-round individual final, such as Jarman, gymnasts must perform in every event to get an all-around score for qualification.
Whitlock performed on just three of the apparatuses during men’s qualification in subdivision one, focussing purely on his specialties and securing a place in the final for the pommel horse, though also featuring in the horizontal bar and parallel bars to fill the quota with four gymnasts on each apparatus for the team final.
Unlike Tokyo 2020, where only four gymnasts were named in a team, the allowance of five has allowed Team GB to pick their best performers to aim for a spot on the podium. Each team entered the qualification round with four gymnasts on each apparatus, with the lowest performing dropped.
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Wilson hails Whitlock as GOAT and is confident he is 'going to win gold again'
Video credit: TNT Sports
When will Whitlock go for gold in the pommel horse?
The 31-year-old could make history if he is to claim a medal in the pommel horse after claiming his medals in London 2012, before going onto to win gold and bronze in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020.
If he does make it onto the podium, Whitlock would become the only artistic gymnast in the modern era to win a medal at four different Games.
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The British hopeful qualified third in the pommel horse, behind Ireland’s Rhys McClenaghan and Stephen Nedoroscik of USA.
The men’s pommel horse final will take place on Saturday, August 3 at 16:16 UK time.
discovery+ is the streaming home of the Olympic Games, and the only place you can watch every moment of Paris 2024 this summer
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