By Carl Field

Welsh artistic gymnasts Ellie Lewis, Jemima Taylor and Alex Niscoveanu all returned home from Slovenia with medals in their luggage after representing Team GB at the European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF) in Maribor.

Niscoveanu, 17, who hails from Penarth and trains at South Essex, won Team gold alongside Jonas Rushworth (Leeds) and Sol Scott (Huntingdon) in the Boys Team Final, as well as individual all-around bronze.

Lewis and Taylor, meanwhile, teamed up with Ema Kandalova, from London, to bag bronze in the Girls Team Final.

The Welsh trio also qualified for multiple individual apparatus finals between them.

Ellie Lewis (centre) and Jemima Taylor (right) along with Ema Kandalova (centre) after winning bronze for GB in the Girls Team Final.

Niscoveanu competed in the Boys floor and pommel horse finals, 14-year-old Taylor, from Newport, took her place in the Girls vault and floor finals – only just missing out on the medal places in the latter – while Lewis, aged 13 from Bridgend, finished sixth on uneven bars.

There was also Girls individual all-around bronze for Kandalova, all-around silver for Rushworth and bronze on vault for Scott in the Boys event, taking the gymnastics medal tally to six.

The six young British gymnasts were part of a 39-strong Team GB competing across five different sports at what was the 17th edition of the summer EYOF across six days of competition.

The gymnastics team were led in Slovenia by Welsh Gymnastics head national women’s artistic coach Tracey Skirton-Davies.

Team GB finished the Maribor 2023 European Youth Olympic Festival with 24 medals in total, placing seventh in the overall medal standings.

Welsh gymnasts Ellie Lewis (l), Alex Niscoveanu and Jemima Taylor.