The 2016 Rio Olympics will be Becky Downie's second time competing at the Games for Great Britain. At 24 years old, she has devoted two decades to the sport she loves, and is excited to compete alongside her younger sister Ellie Downie in Brazil.

On the world stage, Great Britain is coming off a historic performance at the 2015 World Championships, where they secured their first-ever bronze team medal. In Rio, Downie has a good chance at a bars medal with her huge 6.9 D-score and impressive consistency.

We recently caught up with Downie, who shared about staying motivated, GBR's final Olympic training camp, building off Worlds, and having fun in Rio.
 

FloGymnastics: You qualified to the Olympics in 2008 and were a reserve in 2012--what has kept you going at such a high level for so long?

Becky Downie: What's kept me going is my genuine love for the sport, plus I still felt I had more to accomplish.

How have you stayed motivated and healthy? Has that been difficult?

Staying motivated comes pretty naturally to me. Of course, you have your bad days, but overall, I really do love what I do and I always want to keep improving. Staying healthy is always a challenge, but I feel experience comes with age, and I know how to mange my body better than ever now at 24.

I wouldn't say it's been difficult, but it has taken time to learn about myself and my body. I know exactly what I need to do to get routine-fit, protect injuries, and I know what my body does and doesn't respond well to.

How does it feel to be headed to your second Olympics? How cool is it to have Ellie by your side this time?

It really does feel incredible to be heading to my second Olympics. It still doesn't feel real yet, as we've been preparing for it like every other competition this year, but I can't wait to just get there now.

Having Ellie by my side is a lot of fun--it's so nice having someone so close to share all these amazing experiences with.

Is there a specific way you and Ellie support each other, especially if one is having a tough day--pep talks, etc?

I wouldn't say there's anything specific we do for each other--we just generally get along really well and know if we ever need anything, we're always there for each other.

How did the final camp go before Rio?

The camp mood was very positive. The whole team is working extremely hard to be as prepared as we can possibly be. We wanted to go to Rio knowing we did absolutely everything, and I believe the whole team did that.

Team GBR had an amazing showing at Worlds last year with a team bronze--how are you looking to build on that at the Olympics?

Worlds last year definitely gave our team a lot of confidence, knowing we now have the ability to challenge for medals against the rest of the world. For Rio, I think the aim has been for each team member to be the best version of themselves they can for the team. Everyone knows what their role is within the team, and everyone's working as hard as they can right now achieve that.

What are you most looking forward to in Rio? Do you have any specific goals?

In Rio, I'm most looking forward to being back on the Olympic stage and really enjoying the Olympic experience with the team. The Olympics is such a special time, and this time around, I want to make sure I enjoy every minute.

My goal in Rio is to be the best version of me I can be--not just for myself, but for my team. The team is our biggest focus going into these Games, and I can't wait to get going now and have some fun!


Related:
2016 Rio Olympics Central