HALL NOT FAZED BY FIRST MAJOR TOURNAMENT
James Hall soon felt at home among all the big names at the European Championships. Hall took all-around bronze in his first major tournament and finished fourth in the high bar final. The Pegasus gymnast qualified via the British Championships and was determined to take his chance in Romania. He said: “I knew I was ready. It’s a bit surreal. It’s not like any other competition. “It’s a major, maybe third to the Olympics (and worlds). It’s not daunting but it’s scary. “You’ve got to go out there and perform in front of however many people but it was what we’ve been working for all our lives to get these opportunities. “You do it in the gym and it’s really no different except there’s a few thousand people watching. “It feels big. You get a day to go in the arena and practise a little bit. “You walk in and you see all the TV crews and the empty seats and you think they’re going to be full in a day or two. “It’s absolutely amazing to think this is where some of the biggest names in the world are about to compete and I’m going to be one of them.” Hall may have been competing in his first major but he fancied his medal chances. He said: “It was entirely possible. It wasn’t going to be easy because there were some huge names out there, the current European champion and all the people you usually see on TV. “I think I got to the parallel bars, my second to last piece, and I just thought if ‘I go through this clean then I’ve got a real good shot’. “My last piece was the high bar, I nailed that and I knew then I’d done it. It felt like a dream. “My mum was out there, she went to watch. “She wasn’t going to but she went as a last-minute thing and when I won the medal I remember looking up to her and thinking, ‘we did it, after all these years, we did it’.” Like team-mate Courtney Tulloch, Hall was overlooked for the Rio Olympics. He got straight back to work and intends to push on at the World Championships in Canada in September. He said: “Anything can happen really. I fancy my chances now, especially after this bronze. “Now I’ve got that, it’s an enormous confidence boost and I’ll be looking to the future.” Medals for Hall and Tulloch made Pegasus the most successful club at the European Championships. Hall added: “I’m glad I could do it for my club more than myself, really. “It’s great for me and Courtney but also for the club’s profile. “If we do well it’s normally us that gets recognised, so it’s good for Pegasus to get some recognition.”