MAX WHITLOCK is Great Britain’s most successful gymnast and made history in 2016 when he won two gold medals in the Rio Olympics.
After finding success in the World Championships, the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games, he was finally crowned Olympic champion in Brazil – and followed that with a third gold in Tokyo.
He came out victorious in the pommel horse and the Floor exercise, and picked up a bronze medal in the All-around in Rio and then won another pommel horse gold in 2020.
Here is what we know about the extraordinary gymnast – who will compete at the Olympics for the FINAL time in Paris.
Born in Hemel Hempstead in 1993, Whitlock has been involved in gymnastics ever since he was 7, joining the Sapphire School of Gymnastics after being introduced to the sport by a friend.
When he was 12 he joined the South Essex Gymnastics Club where he guided under the expertise of Scott Hann.
In the 2010 Junior European Championships in Birmingham, he came out on top in the Pommel horse, and finished with a silver in the all-around.
He first came to prominence representing England in 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi just six months excelling in Birmingham.
At just 17, he came away with three medals – two silver’s in the Team and Pommel Horse events, and a bronze on the Horizontal bar.
However despite his success, he was only an alternative for Great Britain in the 2011 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Tokyo.
Prior to 2012, Great Britain hadn’t won a Team medal in the Olympics since 1912.
Whitlock, however, changed all that by winning two bronzes – one in the team event and one on the pommel horse.
He then shattered records in 2016, winning two gold medals (pommel horse and floor) and another bronze for the all-around.
Whitlock then won a third gold at Tokyo 2020 for the pommel horse to take his overall tally to six medals – three gold and three bronze.
Now 31, Whitlock is hoping to add to his tally in Paris – but announced it would be his final Games.
He said: “This moment feels like it’s the right time for me. Reflecting on my 24-year journey, I feel extremely fortunate to have found such a huge passion and something I have loved for so long.
“I’m excited and motivated to aim for a fourth and final Olympics. Post-Tokyo Olympics, I almost allowed fear of failure to dictate my path and stop gymnastics altogether.
“This final chapter of my competing career, the most motivated I have been in the last eight years, has me excited for the opportunity to try and create further history.
“I aim to elevate my mission of creating opportunities for children, ensuring they receive a strong foundation in primary schools and grassroots sports. I’m eager to see how I can expand on the impact post career.”
Whitlock is by far Britain’s most successful gymnast, having also won three World Championship golds, four European golds and four more at the Commonwealth games.
Overall, he has won 14 gold medals, 12 silver and six bronze in his career.
Whitlock has always performed valiantly in major competitions. In the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Scotland he won five medals, including three gold’s, one silver and a bronze, adding to his gold medal again in the Pommel Horse in the European Championships the same year.
However his form started to dip, and in the 2015 European Championships in Montpellier he failed to qualify for the final of any event.
But like a true champion he came back fighting, and in 2015 won his first World Championship medal in Glasgow in the Pommel horse, adding three more silver medals to go alone with the runner-up medal he won in 2013.
The talents of Whitlock have always left people taking notice, but he became a household name this Summer after his performances in the Rio Olympics.
His success left him with a nomination for the Sports Personality of the Year award, after he again excelled in the Pommel horse event winning the gold medal, as well as winning in the Floor exercise two hours prior.
In addition to the bronze he won in the All-around event which ended a 108 year wait for a medal, he became Great Britain’s most decorated gymnast.
He also has just been named Best British Sports Star at the BBC Radio 1 Teen awards, beating the likes of Anthony Joshua and Andy Murray.
