Leeds gymnast Wilson has key role in Great Britain’s brilliant silver

Wilson, who also claimed two Commonwealth gold medals last year at Glasgow’s SSE Hydro, had a big role to play as he contributed high scores in the still rings, the parallel bars and the high bar as Britain beat reigning champions China into bronze medal position.

In the end they were under half a point away from Japan who topped the podium, but going into the final rotation at the SSE Hydro in fourth it looked like it might not happen for Wilson’s side.

However, brilliance on the floor from Dan Purvis and Max Whitlock saw them edge out China and claim their first ever world championships men’s team medal

“It’s an incredible feeling to have this medal around my neck,” said Wilson. “Our goal was just to come out and hit 18 out of 18 routines, and we did it.

“A silver medal means we’ve made history and I couldn’t be happier. I’m just so proud to be a part of this team and winning this for Britain.

“To be honest it’s more nerve-wracking watching then actually doing the routines myself, so the final floor was really tense for me.

“I had a big role today doing three pieces, and while I didn’t feel like I hit the three perfect routines I was after, I showed a bit of grit and managed to fight my way through those routines to post decent scores.

“There’s no bigger pressure than that; for your score to be counting in a world team final. I love being out there and I want to keep doing this for many years.”

Wilson now turns his attentions to his parallel bars final later this week, after he qualified inside the top eight over the weekend.

And with a silver medal already under their belts, Wilson is confident his teammates have the potential to deliver even more silverware in the coming days.

He added: “This will definitely give us all a lot of confidence going into the individual competitions.

“The boys have put in some amazing performances - Max in particular was incredible today and he’s in the all-around final in a few days.

“Individually we’ve got great chances of medals, but right now I just want to take stock of this as getting the first ever team world medal for Britain is incredible.”

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