The Daily Telegraph - Sport

Inside Track Georgia-mae Fenton

As the uneven bars specialist prepares for the Olympics in Paris, she recalls gymnastic falls, karaoke and her shopping addiction

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Who is the one person you would like to meet, dead or alive?

Michael Jordan. His mindset towards competitio­n is next level. He will do whatever he needs to win – in a good way – and I would like to tap into that.

Describe yourself in three words.

Strong-willed, passionate and caring.

If you could have one superpower, what would it be?

In terms of gymnastics: to never fall. That would be a helpful one. In general life: to be invisible. You would get to be in certain rooms and not be seen; any opportunit­y to be invisible would be quite cool.

What is your worst habit?

I procrastin­ate in general quite a lot. Self-doubt is a big one and it can be challengin­g with gymnastics. It is something I work on to stop it coming through.

What is your most embarrassi­ng moment?

I am going for the World Championsh­ips last year when I fell of the beam, which was quite embarrassi­ng. I did carry on and finish my routine.

If you could switch lives with anyone in the world for a day, who would it be?

A supermodel would be quite interestin­g. Or just to be one of the Kardashian­s. Kendall Jenner – she ticks both.

Are you interested in fashion?

I do love clothes and putting outfits together, designing leotards for competitio­ns. For the home nations competitio­ns I design my own leotards with Quatro while

Great Britain ones are quite set in stone, although this time they have given us a few options to see what we like. To have a little bit of input is good.

What is your favourite childhood memory?

I have to say starting in the gym. I was overwhelme­d with excitement; I just remember being so excited to learn new things. I was seven – quite late compared to other people – and I went with my little sister, so it was good to spend time with her too.

What is your most prized possession?

My dog. I have a French bulldog and he is so cute. He is called Hudson – I just saw the name on Pinterest and thought I would go for that. I never had a dog growing up so when I could buy one I went for it. It has been the best thing for my whole family.

What song gets you on the dancefloor?

Anything R’N’B will get me up and on my feet. Rap also gets me pumped up.

What is your dream three-course meal and dinner guests?

Calamari for starter, steak, chips and salad for main, and dessert. There are so many options but I will go for chocolate brownie and ice cream. My guests would be Kendall Jenner, Hailey Bieber – she is very pretty and always looks good, she has got great fashion sense. And Justin Bieber – everyone wants to meet him.

What is the best advice you have ever received?

To trust myself and realise how capable I am.

What is your karaoke song?

My singing is disgracefu­l but in terms of knowing the words I will say Let Me Love You by Mario.

What is the most ridiculous thing you have ever bought?

That is an everyday occurrence with my shopping addiction. I would probably say buying a gel nail kit thinking I would be able to do it but then having to pay to get my nails done anyway. I get them done every couple of weeks and for competitio­ns I go for something a bit more crazy. If I get selected for the Olympics, I will put some serious thought into those nails. I would have to get the rings on there, a GB flag on there …

If you had a time machine, would you go back in time or go to the future?

That is a difficult one. You cannot change the past, everything happens for a reason, so going into the future you would get a glimpse of what is to come.

What has been your favourite holiday?

I have not been able to go on holiday too much because of gymnastics. I went to Italy with one of the girls from the squad, Ruby [Evans], and I loved it. I would go back every year. We did Sorrento, Capri…

Do you have any hidden talents or a party trick?

My hidden talent is I can diamante things – I have done a dress, a corset … [Party tricks] are an injury risk but once I am done with competitio­ns I could do a back flip on the dance floor.

What is your biggest non-sporting achievemen­t?

Just moving out. That was a big step. It was two years ago now. My family live in Kent and I live in Essex now so that I am near the gym. I cannot drive so when I learn to drive that will be my biggest achievemen­t. I have started lessons every so often but keep having to put them on the back-burner. After this year, I just have to do it.

What is your favourite TV show?

I do love Dance Moms. That is my guilty pleasure. But I will say Keeping Up With the Kardashian­s.

What is the one rule you would like to change in your sport?

That if you fall off you have a little bit more time to get back on. Sometimes you need to really gather yourself to get back on and the risk of falling off again is quite high. So a bit more time to get yourself together would be good.

If you were not a sports person, what would you be doing?

Something in fashion. If an opportunit­y came to do modelling I would grab it with both hands. I would love to do that but I wouldn’t pursue it, it is more if it came to me.

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 ?? ?? Balancing act: Georgia-mae Fenton
Balancing act: Georgia-mae Fenton

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