Max Whitlock admits his London 2012 heroics gave him the belief he could follow it up with an equally impressive 2013 campaign.
The 20-year-old has certainly lived up to expectations since claiming two bronze medals – in the team and pommel horse events respectively – at last year’s Olympic Games.
This term Whitlock has amassed some impressive results and medal hauls.
He claimed three medals at the European Championships in Moscow – a gold in the floor exercise, a silver in the individual all-around competition and a bronze in the pommel horse.
He also secured silver in the pommel horse at the World Championships in Antwerp earlier this year but Whitlock is not finished there.
He is eyeing more medals in 2014, with the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow his main target.
But he insists this new-found belief would not have been present had it not been for the historic performance in London, where the men’s team picked up their first medal since 1912.
“This season has been amazing,” said Whitlock. “The whole year has been unbelievable for me coming off the back of the Olympics with the results I got there.
“The European and World Championships, to get medals in both of them was amazing.
“The bronze at London 2012 helped me a lot in confidence and experience. Every competition that I do I look to gain experience from it and hopefully I can use that in future competitions.
“The pressure has definitely changed since London. There’s now more of an expectation on me to perform well so I now want to go to every competition and try and stay as chilled as I can and enjoy the experience and hopefully show some good routines.
“British Gymnastics is a strong team. It’s very, very hard at the moment to even qualify for the team as the gymnasts are so strong but I’m hoping to go to the Europeans, Commonwealths and Worlds so hopefully 2014 can be a busy year for me.
“I would love to get a gold at the Commonwealth Games. That’s what every sportsperson is aiming for and I’m no different so hopefully I can keep working hard in the gym and prove myself.”
© Sportsbeat 2013