Jake Jarman, 22, gunning for Olympic gold with Team GB after being scouted swinging on monkey bars at local park aged 8
JAKE JARMAN will have the world at his feet this summer.
But the 22-year-old gymnast from Peterborough got the biggest sensation by seeing it from 10,000 feet.
Jarman, the newest recruit to SunSport’s “Seinesational Six” for the 2024 Paris Olympics, cannot wait to walk out at the Bercy Arena this summer.
World champion on the vault, a four-time gold-medal winner at the Commonwealth Games and one of the elite group of current gymnasts with a move named after him, Jarman is aiming for EIGHT medals in Paris.
Yet he admitted he got as big a thrill by jumping out of a plane over the Dubai desert — and was glad that his parachute opened.
Jarman recalled: “It was so high that it didn’t even look real, looking down.
“It felt like I was looking at a projection of the floor or something.
“To be honest, I did look at the statistics of skydiving accidents first and, as soon as I saw that it’s statistically safer than driving, I said, ‘I’m doing it 100 per cent’.
“I went with Joe Fraser and James Hall.
“It was on the plane, sat there, looking at my team-mates, when I started to wonder.
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“The next thing you know, you’re out of the plane and flying through the air.
“But the buzz I got from that is similar to what I get from competition. It’s the same adrenaline rush.
“All of that buzz, that crazy buzz, just makes me happy — and to be able to perform in front of people and showcase what you can do is what I live for.”
Jarman is an engaging fizz-ball of energy — as he was when he was spotted by a coach swinging wildly from the monkey bars in a local park, aged eight.
He was with his nan Sheila at the time and, since dad Tony and Philippines-born mum Anna were both working, she was the one who would drive him to the club in Huntingdon, Cambs, where he still trains.
It also produced the pioneer of the current GB team, London 2012 silver-medallist Louis Smith.
Jarman said: “I was so hyper. I just had so much energy and I guess they probably thought I was somewhat of a natural.”
This week he is competing at the European Championships in Rimini, Italy — but it is all about Paris this summer.
He added: “I don’t think it will really hit me until I’m there, to realise what a spectacle it is and to actually be on that floor competing.
“When you’re in the crowd, you hear people next to you but it gets drowned out.
“But when you’re in the middle of the floor, you get to hear everything. It’s just that noise and the feeling is just something else.
“It’s definitely nerve-racking at times — but what I’ve learnt is you can actually use those nerves to your advantage.
“I found I can get it just right, I can actually perform better under pressure than when I’m in a relaxed environment. That’s what I love as well.”
Jarman thanked the National Lottery players who have helped him make his Olympic dream come true.
He said: “Being a funded athlete is a huge privilege and it’s something that I’m always grateful for.
“Without the Lottery funding, I wouldn’t be able to do half the stuff I do now.
“It pays for my essential needs, like food, transport and insurance. Without it, I’d have to do a day job first, then gymnastics.”
*National Lottery players raise more than £30million a week for good causes including vital funding into sport — from grassroots to elite. Find out how your numbers make amazing happen at www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk #MakeAmazingHappen #ThanksToYou