Gymnast Max Whitlock intends to continue competing at the highest level into his 30s
AT 25, English gymnast Max Whitlock is already past his peak in the sport. But the Commonwealth Games gold and silver medallist is determined to keep going well into his 30s.
Confidential
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AT 25, English gymnast Max Whitlock is past his peak.
But the Commonwealth Games gold and silver medallist is determined to keep going in the sport well into his 30s.
“Peak age is around 22 or 23. A lot of gymnasts finish in their late 20s but I am hoping to push it,” Whitlock told Games Confidential, attending a lunch at the Longines Records Club before flying home to the UK.
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“I love the sport. I love training. I love competing. I love everything about it. I will carry on until I can’t. I want to keep going for as long as possible. If I could make two more Olympics, that would be my dream and if I can keep going on after that, I will.”
Despite his success — a gold in the teams event and silver in pommel horse — Whitlock says he’s going home determined to improve.
“There are a lot of improvements I am hoping to go back and make some changes,” Whitlock told Games Confidential, attending a lunch at the Longines Records Lunch before flying home to the UK.
“I made a few mistakes in my individual finals, it didn’t go exactly to plan as I wanted but that is the competitions where you learn the most from. A perfect competition, you don’t actually learn anything from.”
Whitlock is one of Britain’s most high profile athletes, securing two golds and a bronze at the Rio Olympics in 2016 and two bronze medals at the London Olympics in 2012.
He has a total of four Commonwealth Games gold medals to his name (three from Glasgow and his team medal here in Australia), four silver medals (two from Delhi in 2010 and one each from Glasgow and the Gold Coast), and two bronze — one from Delhi and one from Glasgow.
“I’m going to get a lot more picky with what I am doing so I’ve learnt exactly what I need to do when I get back (to the UK),” he said. So I am going to make sure that my routines are at a standard where they are pretty much undeductable. This has given me a lot of fire to really go for it and a lot of motivation heading into the European championships that are coming up.”
Whitlock laughed when asked about the comfort of the revealing outfits gymnasts wear when competing.
“They are good outfits, they hold us in.”
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