Video: Sam Oldham on what he’s targeting in the next four years
Olympic gymnast Sam Oldham has said that he is ‘really striving for the world championships’ as it’s the only medal he needs to complete the collection.
Sam won a bronze at London 2012 and has won a medal in every major championships apart from the worlds, including a Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth gold.
However he was left out of the Team GB team that travelled to Rio over the summer which has motivated him to train harder than ever back in Notts.
Speaking on Sports Week, Sam said: “One thing I really took out of the summer is the hunger to win medals again and to win championships.
“There are things that I have missed out either through injury or team selection in the last few years; I’ve struggled and perhaps I’ve not had the best opportunity to get those successes.
“I’ve still not been the British all-round senior champion for example which I can aim for next year.”
I could run around like a nutter in a controlled environment
Sam used to play for Nottingham Forest, initially following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, but later had a choice to make between pursuing football or gymnastics.
He said: “Everyone in the family presumed that I would pick football because of the background in the sport but when it came to choose, I had already dedicated so much of my life to gymnastics as I started competing for GB and that’s what I wanted to do.
“When I started gymnastics 15 years ago, it was an obscure sport to get into but like most kids in elite sport I was a bit crazy, jumping off and around sofas and tables!
“I went to a local gymnastics club and I could run around like a nutter in a more controlled environment; I loved that straight away.”
For more from Sam watch the November 16 episode of Sports Week on Notts TV at 7.30pm, or see our catch up service from 8pm, where the entire series is also available on demand.
