POOLE'S Bryony Page will be one of Great Britain’s flagbearers at the closing ceremony for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Bryony now has a medal of every colour in her collection after upgrading her Rio de Janeiro silver and Tokyo bronze with gold in trampoline gymnastics.
Her Rio medal was the first for a British athlete in the sport and she now plans to take up a career opportunity with the Cirque du Soleil.
Read more: Poole star Bryony Page wins gold at Paris Olympics
She said: “I’ve been shaking ever since I was told (I’m a flagbearer), it’s an absolute honour and privilege and I will just try to hold back the tears as long as I can because it means so much to represent our sports.”
Asked to nominate her favourite Olympic moments aside from her own success, she said. “I was extremely proud of Becky Downie, who has had a difficult journey to make it to her third Games.
“I love the story that for her first Olympics, one of her teammates had just been born essentially and she’s been on the teams since then.
“Emily Campbell got her bronze today which was incredible, Toby (Roberts) with his climbing gold was amazing to watch as well. Across the board I just enjoyed watching all the sports.”
Bryony will carry the flag for Team GB along with Alex Yee.
Alex claimed a dramatic victory in the men’s triathlon, overhauling New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde after looking booked for second place at one stage. He also takes home a bronze via the mixed relay competition, adding to his individual silver and relay gold from Tokyo.
He said: “It’s a massive honour. I got on the Eurostar yesterday expecting just to celebrate the success of Team GB and enjoy the closing ceremony, so to find out I’m going to be holding the flag is a real honour.
“I think it’s really special given the success triathlon has had before to be picked as the first flagbearer (from the sport).”
Reflecting on Team GB’s overall Olympic performance he added: “It isn’t just about individual medal success, it’s about inspiring a generation, just being excited about sport and falling in love with the Olympics.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here