Career lowlights
Tweddle suffered disappointment at each of her two previous Olympic Games. She failed to reach the asymmetric bars final in 2004 when a genuine medal hope, and four years later in Beijing she missed out on bronze by a mere 0.025 points after taking a step forward on her dismount.
She has since admitted: “It’s still too sore to watch because it was just so close”.
She failed to make the uneven bars final at her last ever World Championships in 2011.
Career background
Johannesburg-born Tweddle, who moved with her family to Cheshire when she was 18 months old, took up gymnastics aged seven at her local club, Crewe and Nantwich, but hated it!
However, her potential was soon recognised and she joined the British junior national team in 1994.
She gave up the vault and beam in 2009 due to recurring foot injuries.
Did you know?
She has set up her own company, Total Gymnastics, with Steve Parry, the former Olympic bronze medallist in swimming, to help develop gymnastics in schools. She says: “I give teachers tips to plan lessons and help to make sure that children with talent get into clubs.”
