ON A day of record-breaking, Wales made more history at the Commonwealth Games with a first ever team medal in artistic gymnastics, writes Andrew Penman.
Jessica Hogg, Raer Theaker, Elizabeth Beddoe, Georgina Hockenhull and Angel Romaeo just pipped Canada to the bronze medal with a score of 160.095.
The gymnastics surprise medal, alongside three more in the pool, a bronze for wrestler Craig Pilling and a guaranteed podium place for boxers Joe Cordina and Nathan Thorley means Team Wales have already surpassed their pre-Games target of 27 medals.
The Welsh gymnastics girls had completed their routines in the afternoon and sat in the gold medal position but had to wait an agonising three hours to find out if they’d done enough to make the top three.
It came down to the last floor routine from the Canadians but they weren’t good enough to dislodge Wales from the bronze medal position.
For Hogg it was perfect retirement present as she calls it a day after Glasgow 2014.
“Ending on something like this, going home with a Commonwealth medal, is not what I expected,” she said.
“I just came here to enjoy myself and do my best and I have done that.”
Theaker, who had to pull out through injury on day two of competition, was also surprised and delighted to have won a Commonwealth Games medal.
“We just expected to come out and do our best with smiles on our faces,” she said.
“We certainly have smiles leaving with these medals around our necks. This is such a surprise and just shows that all of our hard work has paid off.
“We didn't expect to win a medal. Our legs were shaking and we were crying when we found out that we had got a medal.”
Beddoe said: “I felt it went really well for us today, everyone had clean routines.
“Raer pulled out this morning with her injury so we had to change things around last minute but everyone did great. I'm really proud of everyone.
“Everyone performed great today even with some of the girls having to step in on different apparatuses, but they did clean routines and I'm so proud.”
The men’s artistic gymnastic team finished fifth earlier in the day.
Team member Harry Owens said: “For Team Wales we've done absolutely fantastic. We've come out five points behind Australia so we're chuffed with that.”
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