Golden boy Joe Fraser ‘can lead British gymnasts to glory’

Fraser is the headline name in the men’s team that is hoping to win a first Olympic or World Championship medal since 2015.

It has been an up-and-down year for the former Black Country schoolboy ace, who broke his foot seven weeks before the summer’s Commonwealth Games and then ruptured his appendix two weeks later.

But Fraser defied the odds to take a treble of Commonwealth golds before clinching another hat-trick at the European Championships in Munich later that month.

Fraser now heads to Liverpool looking to win back his parallel bars gold medal from 2019, and triple Olympic champion Whitlock believes his hard yards will set him up well for a shot at more medals.

“They are grafters,” said Whitlock, who will watch Great Britain’s new generation of gymnasts from the press box at the M&S Bank Arena. “They’re obviously talented at what they do but they work so hard.

“These gymnasts are in the gym so many hours a week, dedicated, committed. They have their goals, they have their ambitions, and work towards them.

“It’s not rocket science, they know what they want to do and they’re working hard towards it.

“At the Commonwealth Games, with Joe pushing through injuries and still coming out with medals, it’s because of the work that he’s put in previously.

“That injury would have been a massive blip in that process, but it didn’t stop him. They all have massive potential to come out with medals, I’m not afraid to say that. But it’s all about what happens on the day.”

Whitlock decided he needed a break from gymnastics following the successful defence his Olympic pommel horse gold medal in Tokyo last summer and is taking a year out.

However, he nearly quit altogether after feeling “completely lost” but is now back in love with the sport and is the wise old head among a new generation that saw success at two major competitions this summer.

The triple Olympic champion admits he can’t wait to get back in among the team dynamic, but is looking forward to watching from afar next week with the belief that good old-fashioned team spirit will go a long way in Liverpool.

While former Sandwell Academy pupil Fraser may have the most decorated CV of a team that also includes four-time Commonwealth gold medallist Jake Jarman, Giarnni Regini-Moran and James Hall, Whitlock insists there is no leader and good old-fashioned team spirit will drive them to glory in Liverpool.

“Everyone’s got their individual strengths,” added Whitlock.

“Joe has been producing results and doing amazing things but everyone has their strengths and together as a team it is incredible.

“In one sense we are the strongest that we have ever been but the more gymnasts coming through and gaining results, I think it is incredible.

“I don’t really look at it in terms of taking something away from me because as a team we are a good group of mates, Tokyo was proof of that. We were a four-man team going out there and we glued together so well.

“I don’t think any of us had that leadership role, we don’t even label a team captain anymore, everyone is just an individual coming together as a team. We can take learning experiences from each of us.

“Some of the guys ask me about previous experiences, such as trying to do three majors in one year, so they can learn from my experience but it is the same the other way around.

“When we come together, we glue really well and support each other but also, we just muck about together.

“They are big competitions, they hold a lot of weight, but they are important to be fun and enjoyed along the way.”

n The World Gymnastics Championships Liverpool 2022 will be one of the largest international sporting events ever to be held in the city. Over 500 gymnasts from more than 70 countries will compete at the M&S Bank Arena from 29 October to 6 November 2022.

Tickets are available at www.2022worldgymnastics.com/tickets.