Sam Oldham facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Sam Oldham |
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Sam Oldham with his silver medal from the 2015 European Championships
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| Full name | Sam Joshua Oldham | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country represented |  Great Britain England |
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| Born | 17 February 1993 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (168 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline | Men's artistic gymnastics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Notts Gymnastics Academy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Retired | 14 September 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Sam Joshua Oldham (born February 17, 1993) is a talented English artistic gymnast. He represented Great Britain in many competitions. Sam was part of the British men's team that won a bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. He also won three junior European championships. Sam won a gold medal on the horizontal bar at the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics in Singapore. He officially retired from elite gymnastics on September 14, 2021.
Contents
About Sam Oldham: Early Life and Interests
Sam Oldham was born on February 17, 1993. His parents are Bob and Dawn Oldham. Sam lives in Keyworth, Nottinghamshire, England, with his family. He has three siblings.
Sam's Schooling and Training Focus
Sam first went to Crossdale Drive Primary School in Keyworth. Later, he attended Rushcliffe School in West Bridgford. When he was 14, Sam left school to be home-taught. This allowed him to focus more on his gymnastics training.
How Sam Started Gymnastics
Sam began gymnastics when he was seven years old. His teacher suggested he try it. He was also a good football player. Sam played as a forward for the Notts County F.C. Centre of Excellence. When the club closed it down, he received offers from Nottingham Forest F.C. and Derby County F.C.. However, Sam chose to focus on gymnastics instead. His father and grandfather were both footballers. His younger brother plays in the Nottingham Forest youth team.
Sam's Favorite Sports Teams and Athletes
Sam is a big fan of Manchester United F.C.. He admires gymnast Vitaly Scherbo. Sam would have loved to compete against Scherbo because he won six gold medals at the 1992 Summer Olympics.
Sam Oldham's Gymnastics Journey
Sam Oldham had an amazing career in gymnastics, starting from a young age.
Junior Career Highlights
When Sam was 14, he moved to Huntingdon to train with gymnasts preparing for the 2008 Summer Olympics. He stayed with the family of another gymnast, Cameron MacKenzie. One of his training partners was Louis Smith, who later won a bronze medal in pommel horse at the 2008 Olympics. Louis Smith thanked Sam for being a great training partner.
Overcoming Challenges: Wrist Injury in 2008
In 2008, Sam was the youngest member of the British team at the European Gymnastics Championships in Lausanne, Switzerland. He broke his wrist during his floor routine. Even with a broken wrist, he finished his routine with one hand! This helped the British junior team win a gold medal. Later in 2008, a company from Castle Donington decided to sponsor Sam.
Winning Gold at Youth Events
Sam was part of the British team for the 2009 Australian Youth Olympic Festival. The team won a gold medal there. Later that year, he went to the European Youth Olympic Festival in Tampere, Finland. He won two gold medals in the pommel horse and parallel bars events. For his great performances, Sam was named BBC East Midlands' Junior Sports Personality of the Year in 2009. He also won all seven gold medals at the English national championships that year.
European Junior Champion in 2010
At the 2010 European Gymnastics Championships in Birmingham, England, Sam won three gold medals. He became the European junior champion in the team all-around, the horizontal bar, and the individual all-around. Winning the individual all-around meant he qualified to represent Great Britain at the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics in Singapore.
Success at the Youth Olympics
In Singapore, Sam qualified second overall for the all-around competition. He also made it to the finals in four other events: the floor, pommel horse, parallel bars, and horizontal bar.
In the all-around final, Sam was in second place. But he fell from the horizontal bar, his last event, and finished fifth. He bounced back quickly! He won a silver medal in the pommel horse event, missing gold by only 0.25 points. Then, he won a gold medal in the horizontal bar event, the same apparatus where he had fallen earlier. Even though he went first among the eight finalists, his score of 14.375 points was enough for gold.
After these Games, Sam's coach, Paul Hall, said Sam had a chance to make the British team for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Louis Smith called Sam an "amazing talent." The British head gymnastics coach, Andre Popov, predicted Sam would "absolutely" become an Olympic champion.
Sam considered trying for the 2010 Commonwealth Games team. However, he was chosen for the British senior team for the 2010 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships instead. For his great performances in 2010, Sam was nominated for the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year Award. He also won the Junior Sportsperson of the Year Award at the Nottinghamshire Sports Awards.
Senior Career Achievements
Sam was named as Great Britain's reserve gymnast for the 2010 senior world championships in Rotterdam. He was the youngest member of the British men's team. The British team reached the final and finished seventh in the team all-around. Sam did not compete in that event.
In 2011, Sam was part of the British squad that went to Berlin, Germany, for the 2011 European Artistic Gymnastics Championships. He was again the youngest member of the team. Sam qualified as the second reserve for the parallel bars final. He also qualified in fourth place for the horizontal bar final. He finished fourth in the horizontal bar final, which was his first big senior final.
Overcoming Injuries and Olympic Qualification
Sam was supposed to be part of the British team at the London Prepares series gymnastics Olympic qualifier in January 2012. However, he missed it because he broke his collarbone before the 2011 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in October 2011. He injured himself further during that competition. Even without Sam, the British team successfully qualified for the gymnastics events at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Despite his injury, Sam finished his first year as a senior gymnast by winning a silver medal in the all-around at the British national championships. This competition was also the final tryout for the Olympic Games. Sam said his performance was "better than I could ever have hoped for." It was good enough for him to be chosen for the British Olympic team over Dan Keatings. Sam felt this was his last chance to impress the Olympic selectors after his injury.
Olympic Bronze Medalist
At 19, Sam was the youngest member of the British team for gymnastics at the 2012 Summer Olympics. The team won a bronze medal in the men's team all-around final. This exciting event took place at the North Greenwich Arena on July 30.
European Championships Success in 2014
From May 19 to 25, 2014, Sam competed at the 2014 European Championships in Sofia. Sam and his teammates (Daniel Keatings, Daniel Purvis, Max Whitlock, Kristian Thomas) won a silver medal for Team Great Britain. They scored 262.087 points, finishing just behind Russia. In the individual event finals, Sam won a silver medal in the high bar with a score of 14.866. He finished behind the 2012 Olympic champion, Epke Zonderland.
Later Career and Retirement
Sam suffered an ankle ligament injury at the Commonwealth Games in July 2014. He returned to competition nine months later. Although he was third overall in the all-around and won the floor exercise in the final tryout for the Olympics, he did not make the squad for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
After the 2021 Men’s Artistic British Championships, where he won a gold medal on the Horizontal Bar with a score of 13.900, Sam Oldham announced his official retirement from elite gymnastics on September 14, 2021.
See also
In Spanish: Sam Oldham para niños
