GYMNASTICS: BETH Tweddle allowed herself a rare and well-earned break after returning from the World Championships in Melbourne with a bronze medal.
The 20-year-old gymnast finished third in the uneven bars final to make up for the disappointment of narrowly missing out on a bronze in the all-round final.
Having arrived back in the UK, Beth decided to take a few days off to recuperate before knuckling back down to training.
'I've taken some time off,' said girl from Bunbury. 'I've just been chilling, taking a little break from the gym. But I'll be back this week!'
Beth scored 9.575 to secure her podium place in her favourite event - the uneven bars - before pulling out of the floor final due to an injury sustained during practice.
'It was just bruising but if I'd gone out and not put 100% in on the floor it could have made things worse,' said the City of Liverpool gymnast. 'It was just a precaution.
'I'd come off the bars during warm-up. Normally I'd walk away from it fine, but I must have caught my knee on the edge of the mat. The carpet burned my knee and I pulled a muscle.'
A disastrous beam routine cost Beth third place in the all-round competition. She scored 9.512 on the uneven bars but lost her balance three times on the beam. Her poor score of 8.737 put her fourth.
She moved back into contention with a 9.525 floor routine only to be denied by Australian Monette Russo's 9.387.
USA star Chellsie Memmel took gold and compatriot Nastia Liukin got the silver in the uneven bars.
Beth won world bronze in Anaheim in 2003 and admitted she was thrilled with her repeat performance in Melbourne.
'I'd have settled for the bronze medal on bars before the competition so I'm delighted,' she beamed. 'Obviously I was quite close to getting the bronze in the all-round, but before the championship I wasn't expecting to be that high up so I'm not disappointed with it.
'I surprised myself by some of my performances in the all-round.'
The next major championships for Beth are the Commonwealth Games, which will be staged in Melbourne in March.
The Liverpool John Moores University student struck gold in Manchester in 2002 and is keen to retain her title.
'It was a good test for me in Melbourne because it is the same venue that will be used for the Commonwealth Games,' she said.
'There will be a few gymnasts there who didn't compete at the World Championships so the venue will be new to them. Hopefully that can give me an edge over them.
'It was a really good arena. The atmosphere was really good. It's really good to compete in front of that many people - it's a good feeling.
'There was good support for the British gymnasts and my mum and dad (Ann and Jerry) were there too. It was nice to have a few GB flags flying.'
The European Championships in Greece follow the Commonwealths and the worlds take place later in the year.
'I'll go for them as well,' promised Beth. 'I'll be 21 by then but in gymnastics it's pretty much about however long you can carry on and I'm feeling fine. I've not really thought about retirement yet!'
