‘I’m not done’ – Three-time Olympic gold medallist announces retirement U-turn

Three-time Olympics gold medallist Max Whitlock has decided to reverse his decision to retire and compete in the 2028 LA Games.

The gymnast will be 35 by the time the next Games gets underway, but he wants to be there after just missing out on a medal in Paris.

He had already confirmed that the 2024 Olympics would be his final appearance at the Games.

Whitlock’s preferred Gymnastic discipline is the pommel horse, and he has claimed three medals in it.

This includes two golds in 2016 and one gold in the delayed 2020 Tokyo edition.

He tried to defend his gold in the pommel horse in Paris and was also part of the Team GB side for the team exercise.

Both times, he came fourth, just missing out on a medal, and it appears that is driving him on.

In an interview with The Times, he said: “I was sitting in the station with my family in a cafe for a little bit and I said to them, ‘I’m not done, I can’t finish it like that.

“It was the raw emotion of getting back to the UK and just feeling like I can’t end it like that.

“Something just didn’t feel right.

“’Unfinished is the exact word. My career’s just not complete. It was just really gnawing away at me.

“I thought, ‘It’s the right time for me to retire but it’s not the right way.’ And that’s something that spooks me if I’m really honest because I was pushing it a bit going into Paris in terms of my age. So you can imagine how much I’m pushing it now. It’s a massive challenge.”

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But he doesn’t just want a medal, Whitlock is targeting gold, which given gymnastics is mainly made up of men in their mid 20s, would be some achievement.

“I’m on a mission. I have ten times more motivation compared to the build-up for Paris. I had no motivation to learn new skills,” Whitlock added.

“It was all about ticking over and staying at that level. Now I’m in the gym, I’m learning new skills and I’m trying to put out some of the biggest routines that I’ve probably ever done.

“I know I have the patience to learn new skills. And I know it’s dangerous chasing a high but I’ll be interested to see what kind of high it is and hopefully it’s a complete feeling.

“I think that’s what I’m searching for because I just obviously didn’t feel it after Paris.

“I didn’t feel like that completed my career. It wasn’t closure. It felt open-ended and unfinished. But I don’t know exactly what that closure is or what that high is.”

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Not quite the end of the road

When Whitlock retired, he was rightly praised for his career in gymnastics.

He helped inspire a new generation with his performances across three Olympics before going again in Paris.

On the all-time Team GB table for individual medals, he sits joint-fifth with six.

He shares this honour with legends including Dame Laura Kenny, Sir Steve Redgrave and Adam Peaty.