It isn’t often that the country of Wales gets into the international news.
But thanks to a young girl from Cardiff, they now are.
At the Olympics
She is competing alongside the likes of Simone Biles and Alice Kinsella at the Paris Olympics.
Which is a dream come true for her, but is also a source of pride for her country, Wales.
Started at the Age of Five
She started training as a gymnast at the age of five.
Her parents thought it would be good for her as she was hyperactive and they thought it might calm her down.
They Were Raising a Star
Little did her parents know that they were raising a future star.
At the age of only 17, she is now representing Great Britain at the Olympics in Paris.
Youngest Welsh Gymnast
Her name is Ruby Evans and she is the youngest athlete on the British team at this olympics.
She is also the first Welsh gymnast to make it onto the olympic team since 1996, 28 years ago.
First Day of Competition
Evans did well in her first day of olympic competition on Sunday.
In the team event, she added to Great Britain’s tally with an impressive score of 14.2 on the vault.
Can She Deliver?
Thanks to Evans and her team mates, Great Britain are still in the running for medals at the olympics.
But they haven’t yet come up against the might of Simone Biles and the US team. Can they compete when they do?
“Very Nervous”
Young Ruby Evans spoke in a video on Facebook about what it was like competing at the Olympics for the first time.
“Behind closed doors I was really nervous,” she said. “But when I come out I put my brave face on.”
Watched by a Raft of Celebrities
It’s not surprising that Ruby Evans was nervous.
She was being watched by the likes of Tom Cruise and Jessica Chastain, to name just a few.
Experience Helped
Evans’s previous experience in competitions helped.
She has competed at both the European Championships and at the Doha World Cup where she won silver on the floor.
Making the Finals
Evans has been named as part of the Team GB side that will compete in the Olympic final on Tuesday, July 30, from 5.15pm.
She will participate in the floor exercise during the first rotation alongside Abigail Martin and Alice Kinsella from Team GB. In the second rotation, she will compete in the vault event with Georgia-Mae Fenton and Kinsella. She will not be participating in the third or fourth rotations.
