World Gymnastics Championships: Max Whitlock back in action for GB in Montreal
- Published
Whitlock impresses on pommel return
World Gymnastics Championships on the 大象传媒 |
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Venue: Montreal, Canada Date: 2-8 October |
Coverage: Watch live coverage on 大象传媒 One, 大象传媒 Two, Red Button, Connected TV, online & the 大象传媒 Sport app from 5 October. |
Max Whitlock reached one final but missed out on another as he returned to competition for the first time since winning two Olympic gold medals in Rio.
The 24-year-old topped the pommel standings in qualifying but slipped on the floor at the World Gymnastics Championships in Montreal.
Compatriot Nile Wilson, a bronze medallist at the Rio Olympics, is on course for the all-around final.
Courtney Tulloch is similarly well positioned to make the rings final.
But Dan Purvis, Joe Fraser and James Hall did not qualify for their respective apparatus finals.
The line-ups for the finals will be confirmed after the last of four qualifying subdivisions on Tuesday at about 18:00 BST.
With the top eight qualifiers in each apparatus progressing to finals, Whitlock, defending the pommel title he won in Glasgow in 2015, posted 15.3 to all-but confirm his final spot.
However, a slip on the penultimate pass of his floor routine left the Olympic champion with 13.333 and outside the qualifying spots.
"I was so so nervous," Whitlock told 大象传媒 Sport about his pommel routine.
"I was just happy to stay on. Hopefully I can clean it up and a bit more.
"I made a mistake [on the floor] but if I'm really honest I'm actually pretty happy with the whole thing today.
"I went out there quite inexperienced with my new skills as four of my five tumbles were new."
Olympic high-bar bronze medallist Wilson, the only Briton to do all six apparatus, placed himself well within the top 24 looking to make Thursday's all-around final.
Meanwhile, Tulloch's 14.766 on rings put him behind only Olympic champion Eleftherios Petrounias at the halfway point.
Great Britain's women are in qualifying action on Tuesday from 21:00 BST.
Rio Olympic floor bronze medallist Amy Tinkler will compete on all four apparatus along with Alice Kinsella.
Claudia Fragapane will do floor and beam, while Georgia-Mae Fenton will aim to make the uneven bars final.
At 19, Fragapane is the oldest member of the women's team. Sixteen-year-olds Kinsella and Fenton are making their debuts at World Championship level.
- Published6 October 2017
