Amy Tinkler reflects on 'crazy' Rio gymnastics medal
Thursday 18 August 2016 10:15, UK
Amy Tinkler will rush home from Rio to find out her GCSE results after making history in the gymnastics at Rio 2016.
The 16-year-old from South Durham won over judges by opening her routine with Pretty Woman and ending with a flawless double-pike. With a score of 14.933, she beat Italy's Vanessa Ferrari to third place.
As the youngest member of Team GB, Tinkler is also the youngest British Olympian to win a medal since 1984.
"I didn't even expect to make the finals - so then to medal in a final is incredible," she said.
Tinkler, who trains 31 hours a week at South Durham gymnastics club, described how she was in "total shock" when the "crazy" final placings were confirmed.
She said: "My coach told me that I had nothing to lose and to just go out and enjoy it and that's what I did."
Tinkler, who had to take a break from competitions in order to focus on school work, sat her GCSE exams less than one month before flying to Rio. Having already taken PE a year earlier, she will receive her results for maths, English and French the day after she returns home.
But anticipation is something the teenager has become accustomed to after she faced a 10-minute wait to discover if another gymnast would take her position in the top three.
"To be honest, I think I was more nervous waiting than I was for my routine," she said. "That 10 minutes felt like 10 hours. It was so long but it was worth it."
Both gold and silver medals went to USA, with Simone Biles clinching the top spot alongside teammate Aly Raisman.
Only an hour after Tinkler took to the floor, 20-year old Nile Wilson also made history as the first British man to make it to the horizontal bar final.
After a disappointing eighth-placed finish in the men's all-round, Wilson was still able to come away with a bronze in the individuals.
"To have a medal around my neck is the proudest moment of my life and a dream come true," he said.
Team GB had six gymnastics medals and 50 overall after 11 days of competition, with their sights set on beating a 65-medal record set at London 2012.
