Alex Shatilov
Alex ShatilovReuters

Israeli gymnast Alex Shatilov spoke to Arutz Sheva on Thursday after returning from the London Olympics, where he placed sixth in the men’s floor exercise finals and 12th in the individual all-around final.

Shatilov said he was disappointed by his floor routine performance, but overall, is satisfied despite coming home without a medal.

Getting to the finals is a not-insignificant achievement, he said. “There are eight gymnasts who make the finals, out of many participants from the entire world, and it’s very hard to get into that group of eight,” he explained.

Shatilov said he does not blame anyone for his performance in the finals. “I had all the conditions I needed to prepare for the Olympics, and the truth is, I’ve won medals in other championships,” he said.

Some have suggested that sports officials did not sufficiently prepare the Israeli Olympic team.

Shatilov, 25, began training at age five in his native Uzbekistan and has competed in several world championship events, including the 2008 Olympics. He said that he plans to rest briefly following his return home from London, but will soon return to training “to start preparing all over again, for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in four more years.”

“Maybe I’ll do better there than in previous Olympics,” he added.

Shatilov ended by thanking the Israeli public. “I know that everyone supported us,” he said. “Unfortunately we didn’t bring home a medal this time, but I want to say that it’s not simple to bring home a medal, because there are so many participants and competitors. If we work even harder for the next Olympics, I hope we’ll bring home a medal.”