Australian artistic gymnast Jesse Moore competed at his first senior World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in October, where he finished 11th in the All-Around final, and he was an alternate gymnast for the Championships in 2023. At the 2025 World University Games in Germany, Jesse qualified for the All-Around and Parallel Bars finals and finished 6th in the Team event, and he retained his All-Around title at this year’s Australian Gymnastics Championships, where he also won Gold on Floor, Pommel Horse and Horizontal Bar. Jesse had a skill named on Pommel Horse in the gymnastics Code of Points at this year’s Doha World Challenge Cup, and also came away with a Silver medal on Parallel Bars, and last year, he was the only Australian male artistic gymnast to compete at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, and reached the All-Around final on his Olympic debut. Further competitions for Jesse have seen him win All-Around Gold for the second time at the Oceania Artistic Gymnastics Championships (most recently in Auckland, New Zealand), and he was the youngest Australian artistic gymnast at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in 2022, where he competed alongside his Australian teammates Tyson Bull, Mitchell Morgans, James Bacueti and Clay Mason Stephens, making the All-Around final and three further finals, before having to withdraw during the All-Around final due to a shoulder injury, which led to surgery, which took nearly a year to recover from. Next year, Jesse is planning to compete at the first three competitions of the World Cup series in Germany, Azerbaijan and Turkey, before fully focusing on the Commonwealth Games and the World Championships later in the year. We talked to Jesse about competing at his first senior World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in October, retaining the All-Around title at this year’s Australian Gymnastics Championships and making his Olympic debut at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

What was it like competing at your first senior World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in October, having been an alternate in 2023, and how was your time in Jakarta?

It’s always surreal representing my country at the highest level possible in the sport. Obviously, it was a bittersweet experience being reserve in 2023. I was just coming back from shoulder surgery, and it was an avenue to qualify for the Paris Olympics.

After that, it was really nice to finally be on the team and compete at a senior World Championships. Overall, the competition and my experience in Jakarta were great.

I was pretty disappointed with my performance in qualifications, as I had my eyes set on both an apparatus final and the All-Around final. But I was glad that I could improve on my qualification performance in the final. It still wasn’t my greatest comp, and I know I still have more in the tank and can finish higher in the All-Around. I guess I can take some motivation home from that.

How did you prepare for the competition and what was it like competing in the All-Around final, where you finished in 11th place?

I spent a lot of 2025 competing and getting as much comp exposure as I could in preparation for these big competitions. Obviously, it’s a bit challenging being geographically isolated from the rest of the world, making travelling and competing more expensive and more time-consuming. However, throughout the year and leading into Worlds, it was just a lot of training.

I tried to train smart. Obviously, with a lot of competitions, there’s a lot of load on the body, so just managing that was part of the prep. It was awesome in the AA final alongside the world’s best. I think after four rotations I was sitting in 4th, so to know that I can compete among such great athletes is a really cool feeling.

At the 2025 World University Games in Germany, you finished 6th in the Team event and qualified individually for the All-Around and Parallel Bars finals, can you tell us about this competition?

My aim for this competition, like it always is, was to come home with some silverware. Unfortunately, that didn’t pan out, and I had a few costly falls in the AA final making me finish 4th. It was a tough field of guys competing, so to, again, compete against the world’s best is a great and motivating challenge.

The team, however, did quite well, and I truly believe Australian gymnastics is on the up. It was nice to hit out a good Team event before Commonwealth Games in 2026.

How was it retaining your Australian All-Around title at this year’s Australian Gymnastics Championships and also winning Gold on the Floor, Pommel Horse and Horizontal Bar?

It was a really fun competition this year at the National Championships. I was so glad to hit those routines as I did, as there were a few new things in there this year that I hadn’t competed before. I was a bit nervous going into it, but overall I had a great time.

I’m still waiting for the perfect competition, but for the first National Championships with the new code, I can’t really complain too much.

How different do you find the Australian Gymnastics Championships to compete at opposed to major international competitions and what is it like being part of Team Australia?

It’s always different competing at major events representing Australia. There’s always that added pressure I put on myself to perform and represent my country as best as I can. However, it’s nice not having to travel around the world to compete when we are at the National Championships.

But it’s always hard to replicate the feeling of representing your country without actually being there. I do have pride being from Australia, and I do love this country. To be part of this team with so many good, genuine people, as well as world class athletes, is such a great feeling.

Earlier this year, you competed in the World Cup series, including at the Doha World Challenge Cup; what was it like standing on the podium in Doha when you won Silver on the Parallel Bars and how did you feel when you got a skill named on Pommel Horse in the gymnastics Code of Points?

It was actually my first international senior medal (not counting Oceania events), so to finally obtain a bit of silverware was awesome and the icing on the cake for this competition. It has also made me hungry for more.

Getting a skill named after me has always been a bucket-list item since I started gymnastics. I would always try to come up with new movements with my mates during training, so to compete an original element and get it named was certainly a moment I will remember forever. I’m excited to see some more people compete it!

You were Australia’s only male artistic gymnast to compete at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, how did you feel being named to the Australian Olympic squad and making your Olympic debut?

To make an Olympic team is an indescribable feeling. It’s the pinnacle event of gymnastics and has always been a dream since I started, so to make the Olympics was really special. Better yet to share that moment with family and friends will be something I will never forget.

Stepping out into competition in the uniform, with the crowd cheering, will be a moment I remember forever.

How did you find the experience representing Australia in Paris and competing in the Olympic All-Around final?

Similar to what I said above, it is all so surreal. The Olympic final was incredible, and although it was not my best competition, I personally left everything out there and it is a performance that I am proud of. To not only be an Olympian, but an Olympic finalist, again, is so cool.

But it still makes me hungry for that Olympic medal, and to hopefully qualify an Australian team.

What was it like staying in the athletes village and attending the closing ceremony with the rest of Team Australia at the Stade de France?

Australia did such a good job with the way our part of the village was set up. Walking around and seeing so many great athletes from all around the world was so cool. It was kind of strange walking around the village and seeing world-class athletes that I have seen on TV and grown up watching.

The village, for me personally, was great (although a lot of people were complaining about the beds – I can sleep anywhere, so that didn’t bother me). I was able to soak up the experience afterwards watching multiple sporting events. I was able to make a bunch of friends and meet so many people.

As you can imagine, after all the sports were done, the closing ceremony was pretty crazy! It was so cool being down on the floor with everything happening, and the party certainly continued afterwards with Team Australia!

Also last year, you won All-Around Gold for the second time at the Oceania Artistic Gymnastics Championships, this time in Auckland, New Zealand; how was this?

This was extra special. Being a critical part of the Olympic qualification process, to win this competition and qualify was so surreal. I injured my finger in the podium training before the comp and ended up falling on high bar twice, which was the last event.

This, of course, was the most stressful and nerve-racking moment I’ve ever experienced, but to get across the line was such a big relief.

As the youngest member of Australia’s artistic gymnastics team at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in 2022, how was it competing alongside your Australian teammates Tyson Bull, Mitchell Morgans, James Bacueti and Clay Mason Stephens and how had your competition been going before you unfortunately had to withdraw halfway through the All-Around final due to injury (which then led to surgery)?

Growing up, Tys, Mitch, James and Clay were all people I looked up to, so to be selected on a team with them was already pretty awesome – let alone to be selected on a Commonwealth Games team. All of these guys have so much experience, so it was quite easy to compete with them. We are all really good mates, so that also made the competition really enjoyable.

For me, I was pretty hopeful after the qualifications, making four finals: qualifying 4th in the All-Around and 2nd on High Bar. But, going into the competition, I knew my shoulder wasn’t 100%, and unfortunately on rings in the AA, it gave way. Before this, my shoulder was already really sore, and I couldn’t really do anything in the warm-up, so the comp didn’t start too great before I had to pull out. This also meant I had to pull out of three of the finals, though Pommel was manageable.

This, of course, was pretty devastating, it was my first major senior event, and I had to pull out and then later get surgery. However, it was great to see that a couple of the Aussie boys and girls came back with a few medals. The recovery from surgery took about a year – it was a long, grindy year – but in the same breath, it was somewhat nice to focus on some stuff outside of the gym.

What are some of your favourite highlights from being on the Australian gymnastics team so far and what do you enjoy most about competing around the world as an elite artistic gymnast?

The places and competitions I get to go to are all highlights, but the best thing has got to be showing off what I have been training for my whole life. It has taken a lot of time and effort to get to this point in the sport, and putting all that work into a sport I love makes competing even more special.

I also really enjoy catching up with other gymnasts from around the world and watching them train and compete while we are overseas.

How did you originally get into artistic gymnastics and was it always something you wanted to do at elite level?

My parents put me into gymnastics because I was a ball of energy around the house, and apparently I could do the splits. When I started, it was all about just enjoying training and having fun.

Growing up and going into the elite stream was when I really started realising it’s something I wanted to pursue (while, of course, continuing to have fun!). I love this sport and I’m so glad that it’s something I can compete at the highest level.

Do you have any current favourite gymnasts to watch compete and were there any you particularly liked watching when you were younger?

I grew up in South Australia and trained at the same gym as Sam Offord. Being a multiple Commonwealth Games medallist, he was always someone that I looked up to and loved watching.

Of course, I also loved watching the King (Kōhei Uchimura). He is an idol of the sport and someone who I consider the GOAT. Currently, I like watching Oka Shinnosuke – I think his gymnastics looks incredible and effortless – and also Ángel Barajas, who has got some crazy difficulty and is such a good all-around competitor.

Can you tell us about your typical training day and how much has it changed over the years?

Obviously, growing up, it was all about the basics and fundamentals. As I got older (around 14-15), I really started to get into skill development work. During this time, training was always fitted around school. When I finished school, I could take a full focus into gymnastics, eventually moving to the National Training Centre in Canberra and maintaining 30+ hours a week of training.

My typical training day varies. On bigger days, I will do two sessions in the gymnastics hall – one focusing on skill and routine work, and one on conditioning – then I would do a training session in the weights gym. On lighter days, it tends to only be one session, with a focus on recovery, with Sunday being our only rest day.

Over the years, I believe I have gotten smarter and more efficient with my training, which is becoming increasingly important to manage the load I put my body through, so I don’t overdo things. Although, I can definitely still be better at it!

How do you like to spend your free time?

To be honest, a lot of the time I am cooked from training, so I like to spend my free time relaxing or playing some games. I also have to fit this around my study, uni and casual work.

Occasionally, I do enjoy hanging out with my mates and doing some activities like golf (which I’m not very good at).

Have you received any advice over your gymnastics career so far that has stuck with you?

Something that my old coach (Paul Szyjko) said to me when I was growing up was that every time something didn’t go my way in training, he would call it ‘character building’. I don’t know why, but this has always stuck with me.

I know from experience that not everything is going to go my way 100% of the time, whether that is in competition or training. The only thing that I can do is take it on the chin, learn from it, and try again.

Do you have any competitions coming up that you can tell us about or that you are targeting?

At the moment, I am planning on going to the first three competitions in the World Cup series in 2026 (Germany, Azerbaijan and Turkey). After that, it is a full focus on the Commonwealth Games and, later in the year, the World Championships.

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