Meet Yorkshire Olympic Champion, Bryony Page
Gold medal-winning Bryony tells us about the challenges she's faced and what her future in the sport looks like
What started as a fun childhood hobby (and just one of a clutch of impressive extracurriculars) soon became serious for a young Bryony. ‘My family was always really quite sporty. As kids we had something to do almost every night of the week. For me, I did trampolining three nights and Saturday morning. I also did gymnastics and had flute lessons. We always had something to do – I just saw it as a part of life.’
Early success made Olympic dreams a real possibility. ‘Thinking about it as an Olympic opportunity probably didn’t happen until 2010 when I was 19 and competing at my first World Championships. I made it into the final and placed fourth in the end. I was jumping in the final alongside several Olympic champions, and I thought, “wow, maybe I can become an Olympian too!”’
‘To become an Olympian and come home with a medal – silver actually felt like a gold to me because I couldn’t have done any more and couldn’t have done any better’
From the outside, Bryony’s career has gone from strength to strength, achieving an incredible hat-trick of medals at the Rio, Tokyo and Paris games. ‘One highlight obviously would be the 2016 Olympics. To become an Olympian and come home with a medal – silver actually felt like a gold to me because I couldn’t have done any more and couldn’t have done any better. The medal was more than I’d ever dreamed of.’
But Bryony has also had her share of disappointments. ‘Going into the Tokyo Olympics I was really hoping that I could achieve gold, but I got the bronze in the end. I watch my routine back and I go “this is where I lost the gold medal, this is where I lost the silver medal, and this is where I almost lost the bronze medal.”’ But despite the disappointment, Bryony can still reflect back on the value of it. ‘On the trampoline, I was really positioned poorly, so just the fact that I could hold it together and get the bronze, I’m really proud of that, but it took me a while to not be disappointed, it took a long time to get to that moment with the Tokyo Olympics.’
After earning her first medal at the Rio Olympics in 2016, Bryony had to navigate what completing her goals meant for her career going forward. ‘[Before Rio] I knew I had the potential to become an Olympian, but I never seemed to do things at the right time or I’d have an injury or an illness at the wrong time. I always felt like I couldn’t stop even if things got really challenging or were really tough, it was like, no, I’m not giving up because I want to achieve what I feel like I can achieve,’ she explains. ‘Since then, it’s felt freeing but also difficult. I didn’t have that negative motivator anymore so I felt a little bit lost because I had achieved my dreams – going to the Olympics, becoming an Olympian and getting a medal – it was huge.
‘After Rio I could have a bit more balance in my life. Things that I was putting on hold I could start to open those up a little bit and I felt like I could do that because I’d already achieved what I wanted to in trampolining. It brought a positive spin on things because when you switch off, it means you can go back to your next session fresher and better. It was understanding that balance was okay, and not only okay but it benefitted me.’
This realignment eventually culminated in Olympic gold for Bryony, despite questions surrounding her age and whether she’d return for another games. ‘The age thing does come up so much. They basically go “Bryony Page, she’s the oldest in the Olympic final by seven years!” After Rio we had people saying “are you retiring now?” and I was only 26. I was like, “yes!”. For Tokyo they were saying “are you done after these?” and I was like “no, I’m going to go for Paris.”’
Gold came as the confirmation that Bryony was still at the very top of her game. ‘It’s really hard to put into words. I keep trying to go back to that moment – it just feels really surreal. I know in the moment I was incredibly happy and proud, but in the competition itself there’s always a tiny bit of sadness because it’s over and you’ve put so much in. You’re feeling so many emotions.’
For Bryony, there’s excitement in what lies ahead. ‘I still love the sport and want to be involved with it for as long as I can, because it’s not something that I’m going to be able to do for the rest of my life. I love the idea of going to another Olympic games and I would love to be part of that if I can. I’ve also spoken with Cirque du Soleil and I’ve wanted to do that since I was about 11! But if I can continue to train I would love to make a comeback at LA – I’m keeping my options open.’
