Pommelled Horse, Men

The well known saying: “You wait for a bus and none comes along and then suddenly two come together” certainly applied in the Rio Olympic Arena because just one hour and 45 minutes after Max Whitlock won Britain’s first ever Olympic gymnastics gold medal on the floor, he won a second on his best event, the pommelled horse.

Whitlock qualified for the final as top scorer with 15.800 and was closely followed by his compatriot Louis Smith on 15.700. Smith won silver in 2012 and Whitlock bronze, but at the 2015 World Championships the tables were turned as Whitlock won gold and Smith the silver. The 2014 World Championship bronze medallist, and third best qualifier after the two Britons, Cyril Tommasone of France, started off proceedings with a 15.600 and he held the lead until Alex Naddour of the US went into the lead with 15.700, but two routines later and Louis Smith took over as the new leader with an excellent 15.833. With Whitlock up number seven he knew what he had to do to assure himself of a medal - score more than 15.700 - and he certainly did that with a virtually flawless routine that netted him 15,966 and first place. The Russian Kuksenkov, who represented Ukraine in 2012, was the last man to go but he did not affect the medal positions and Britain were first and second as Whitlock won Britain’s second ever gymnastics gold, and his third medal of the Games.