CHANGING SIDES

down with my parents and my coaches, that I made the decision. That was when I decided to take the eligibility from my mum’s side,” he said, adding that his mum, dad and brother will all be in Australia to watch him when competition gets underway tomorrow. “I had competed in the UK games for England but at that time I wasn’t really clued up into how to go about competing for what country.

“It was my decision. It wasn’t like I was torn, it was a happy decision I was able to make. The England team was looking very strong, it was just after the Olympics, everyone was going for HAMISH CARTER it, and no-one wants to miss out on the Commonwealth Games. I still had to qualify, though, nothing was certain. I still had a lot of pressure. Every competition I had to perform well in.”

In October he performed at the Northern Europeans and walked away with two golds, a silver and a bronze, and has followed that up with solid performances at the Scottish Championships to justify his selection and with less than 24 hours to go, he is hoping that can translate into a Commonwealth Games debut that will help the country maintain the standards set in Glasgow. There the gymnasts weighed in with five medals, including a team silver. Current team-mate Dan Purvis contributed with gold on the parallel bars and a bronze on the rings.

Emulating that kind of return would be a dream come true for Carter. “The team firstly is the priority, we have a silver medal to defend and we will be doing everything we can to do that. We will be competing with people like Dan who is an Olympic medallist. And on top of that individual finals would be a bonus. I would hopefully look to make the floor final, with the floor and high bar my favourite disciplines, but the team is the main focus.”

Well that, and getting a good photo of himself in a kilt for his mum.

0 Hamish Carter: Born in Nottingham.

“Icompetedintheukgames forenglandbutatthattime Iwasn’treallycluedupinto howtogoaboutcompeting forwhatcountry”