The Sam Oldham Podcast

In 2023 Heath Thorpe was crowned the Australian national all around men's gymnastics champion for the first time. Despite this achievement he was not selected ton represent team Australia at the World championships and Olympic qualification event later that year in Belgium. Heath has a large online following within the gymnastics community thanks to his unique style of gymnastics and ability to communicate through social media and content creation. He now trains in Europe and is based at the gymnastics centre in Ghent full time. Heath is an openly gay male gymnast in a space where many athletes are fighting against the publics preconception that gymnastics is a girls sport. With the new code of points rewarding more original skills on the High bar, Heath hopes to start achieving international success on the world stage with his incredible routine in the lead up to LA 2028. And this is his story. 

In the past few weeks I've had the opportunity to share my story with a professional footballer, active British gymnast and a university student. Each of those conversations focussed of a different piece of the puzzle that makes of a professional sportsman's career. In this episode I'm going to talk about some of the key topics we touched on in those conversations. I've also had the opportunity to record an advert and for the first time me and Sam have produced our own content for a someone else to use. And this is my story. 

In 2024 at the Paris summer Olympic Games Anthony Harding took the bronze medal alongside his partner Jack Laugher in the 3m springboard synchronised diving event. Anthony's international career was kickstarted at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aries where he won the individual silver medal and has since been on the podium seven times at major championships. He started diving at the age of six and moved to Leeds at the age of just sixteen to pursue his Olympic aspirations. Gymnastics plays a key role in the sport of diving and for seven years Anthony worked with a former team mate of mine and European champion Ruslan Panteleymonov who sadly passed away in 2022. British diving achieved their best ever medal total in Paris and Anthony was a big part of that success. He has hopes of competing as an individual alongside the synchronised events moving forwards and heading into in LA 2028. And this is his story.

In 2024 Molly Thompson-Smith represented Team GB at the Paris Olympic games in professional climbing. She is a fave time UK national champion and in 2017 became the first British Women in history to win a World Cup medal. Molly took bronze at the 2020 European championships in Moscow and is a driving force within the sport, promoting diversity in the climbing community. Her career has spanned two generations and Molly has seen climbing become a legitimate career path since the sports recent inception into the Olympic movement. With LA 2028 an exciting opportunity many athletes are looking at extending their time horizons. Molly is supported by some of the biggest brands in the world including The North Face. And this is her story

In 2015 James Hall qualified for the Great Britain men's gymnastics team as the travelling reserve that went on to win a historic silver medal at the World championships. Since that senior team selection he has become one of the most consistent athletes within the British team, winning eleven major championships medals in the process. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games James achieved a top 8 finish in the all around event which puts him in a very exclusive club of British men. He was an anchor for the British team that finished fourth at those Games and narrowly missed out on making a second Olympics this summer in Paris. Like a true professional, James showed incredible character in response to the disappointment of missing out on his Olympic aspirations and wholeheartedly supported the team as a reserve. Alongside his team mates Jake Jarmin and Samuel Gingham they have just launched a sports clothing brand called Satus. In 2017 James won the all round bronze medal at the European championships in Romania the home country of his longterm coach Ionut Trandaburu. And this is his story. 

In 2021 Joe Cemlyn-Jones finished second all around at the British Gymnastics championships and was selected to represent Great Britain at the World championships in Japan. The story of his first experience competing at a major championships is one of continuous setbacks and challenges. However he used those lessons to go on to become the Northern European champion just a few short weeks later whilst representing team Wales. Joe trains alongside the likes of Joe Fraser, Dominic Cunningham and Joshua Nathan at the city of Birmingham gymnastics club. He founded JCJ Bricks selling lego online to support his sporting career which has now become a very successful business and allows Joe to train full time as a professional athlete. Joe has goals to compete at the Commonwealth Games in 2026 in Glasgow and compete for Great Britain at the highest level in the future. And this is his story. 

In 2024 Felix Dolci was part of the Canadian men's gymnastics team that finished 8th in the Paris Olympic Team final. This was the first time Canada had qualified a full mens team for the Games since Beijing 2008. Felix has been a driving force behind the recent resurgence of mens gymnastics in Canada and their success internationally. In 2023 he became the Pan American all around champion following on the back of helping Canada qualify for the Olympics. He was part of the new generation of athletes that grew up with the internet at their fingertips and has subsequently built a strong following online through social media. One of the standout moments of the Paris Games this summer was his fall from the High Bar in which his hand guard snapped in the all around final live on television. Incredibly he was able to continue performing and showed the world just how tough the sport of mens gymnastics can be. And this is his story. 

In 2012 following the London Olympic Games I began to struggle mentally after experiencing such an incredible high point. At times I felt completely isolated and turned to partying in an attempt to numb those feelings of loneliness. Many athletes go through a similar process which is often referred to as the Olympic Blues. Four years later I had a different experience after failing to qualify for the Olympic team in Rio but it was equally as challenging to navigate. The Paris Games is now in the rear view mirror for most of us but the athletes that took centre stage will be gradually adapting back into their normal daily life. For me personally this time has been a great opportunity to reflect on the year so far and talk about parenthood, the podcast and my own training goals beyond 2024. And this is my story. 

In 2024 it's easier than ever to share your story if you're an aspiring athlete and build a brand thanks to social media and the internet. However in some ways it's more difficult to stand out from the crowd and build a successful career in professional sports. With national governing bodies ever increasingly focussing on smaller groups of athletes, funding and elite sportsman or sportswoman's lifestyle is a massive financial challenge. Throughout my gymnastics journey I was supported by Red Bull, Sky Sports, My Protein, Super Dry, TURN Gymnastics, local businesses and local sports grants all of which helped support my career. In this episode I break down what I would do If I was to build a professional sports career in 2024. And this is my story. 

In June 2024 just one month ahead of the Paris Olympic Games Edgar Boulet announced his retirement from the sport of artistic gymnastics. He was best known for his incredibly exciting performances of the High bar which earned him the nickname "the showman" and in 2017 he competed in the European final. In 2018 alongside his four team mates, France took the bronze team medal at the European championships in Glasgow behind Russia and Great Britain. The French team have struggled in recent years and failed to qualify a mens team for their home Olympic Games this summer after finishing 19th at the World championships in 2023. Gymnastics is a big sport in France and they have a successful league but their national team structure is potentially restricting their ability to keep athletes in the sport. However their junior team recently won silver at the European championships and Edgar shares his hopes for the future of French gymnastics. And this is his story.