James Hardy made his Commonwealth Games debut earlier this year in Glasgow, which saw him and his Australian teammates win Bronze in the Team event, and individually, he won Bronze on Floor and Rings, also qualifying for the Vault final. Further competitions for James this year were the Oceania Championships in May, winning Silver in the All-Around, and the Australian Championships in July, where he won Silver on Rings and Bronze on Vault. At the 2025 World University Games in Germany, James qualified for the Vault final, and he has competed at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in 2023 in Antwerp and 2025 in Jakarta. Prior to transitioning to senior level, James had competed for Australia at junior level, including at the 2019 Junior World Championships in Györ, Hungary. The next competition for James will be the World Championships in Rotterdam, where Australia will be hoping to qualify a team for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, which James is targeting. Answering our questions, James chatted to us about his Commonwealth Games debut in Glasgow this year, his medal-winning performances at the Games and his further success at this year’s competitions.
At this year’s Commonwealth Games, you had a successful competition with qualifying for three event finals (Floor, Rings and Vault); how was your experience making your Commonwealth Games debut in Glasgow?
It was an incredible experience. Representing Australia always means a lot to me, but making my Commonwealth Games debut felt extra special. Qualifying for three finals and coming home with three Bronze medals was a lot to take in.
I really enjoyed being part of the wider Australian team. In the gym, the men’s and women’s teams felt like one big family, and having AUS HQ as a home away from home made the whole experience even better. I’m still processing it a bit, but I’m really proud of what we achieved.
What did you enjoy most about competing with your Australian teammates Ben Foster, Tru Hagens, Ritam Malik and Jesse Moore, and how was it coming away with Bronze in the Team event on the first day of the competition?
What I enjoyed most was how much we backed each other. The team felt like a big family, and it was special to share that experience with Ben, Tru, Ritam and Jesse. Oceania had already given us a sense of what we could do together, so coming away with Bronze in Glasgow meant a lot.
The Team medal was the result that meant the most to me personally. I’ve looked up to the 2010 Delhi team throughout my career, so to be part of a Commonwealth Games medal-winning team myself was pretty surreal.
How did you feel qualifying for the Floor, Rings and Vault finals, and how did you prepare for each event?
I was amazed to qualify for three finals because I’d really only been aiming for two.
Going into Floor, I didn’t have huge expectations. It was a stacked final, and I just wanted to put out the cleanest routine I could. I actually really liked competing second. I could get my routine done, knowing I’d done my part, and then let the results play out. I just trusted my preparation, so coming away with a medal was a massive surprise.
Going into Rings after that Floor final felt incredible. Behind the curtain before we marched out, I told myself, “This one is for me”. I wanted to soak up the atmosphere and enjoy every moment. I was really proud of the routine I produced, and I think that mentality helped a lot.
For Vault, my main focus was going in with confidence, especially on my landings.
Having won Bronze on Floor and Rings; what was it like winning two individual medals and standing on the podium for Australia?
It was a feeling like nothing else. There was an overwhelming sense of pride and achievement, and it’s still hard to put into words. Representing Australia means so much to me, so standing on the podium in the green and gold was really special.
I was also thinking about everyone supporting me back home. My parents, my partner, my friends and family have backed me for so long. Being able to share those moments with them, even from the other side of the world, meant a lot.
Can you tell us about competing at this year’s Oceania Championships in May, where you won Silver in the All-Around, and Australian Championships in July, which saw you win Silver on Rings and Bronze on Vault?
Oceania was a really useful competition for us as a team. It gave us a good sense of how we worked together and what we needed to improve before the Commonwealth Games. The team result gave us a lot of motivation and helped us believe that a podium in Glasgow was something we could achieve.
Nationals was another great preparation competition before Glasgow. The turnaround between the two was really tight, and I didn’t quite peak at Nationals, but I was extremely happy with some of my performances. I knew there was still room to improve before the Games.
How different did you find competing at the World University Games in Germany last year (qualifying for the Vault final)?
Uni Games was heaps of fun. It was my first taste of a multi-sport event, and it made me really want to experience the Commonwealth Games.
Unfortunately, the Vault final didn’t go as well as I’d hoped, so I wanted a bit of redemption this year, and I feel like I got that in Glasgow. There’s still plenty of room to improve over the next few years. I’d love to compete at Uni Games again next year and potentially another Commonwealth Games in 2030.
How was it representing Australia at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in 2023 in Antwerp and 2025 in Jakarta, and what do you feel you learnt from both competitions?
Antwerp in 2023 was pretty intimidating. It was my first senior World Championships, and I was quite nervous going into it. I learnt a lot about managing nerves at bigger competitions and what it takes to perform at that level.
By Jakarta in 2025, I felt much more relaxed and confident. I was coming off the back of a few injuries, so it wasn’t my best performance, but I was able to use what I’d learnt in Antwerp and keep my nerves under control. Last year also taught me a lot about managing injuries, and this year has been much more successful in that area.
As a junior gymnast, you qualified for the Vault final at the 2019 Junior World Championships, what are some of your favourite memories from competing in Györ, Hungary?
That was a fantastic competition. It was my first real experience competing against the best gymnasts in the world at my age, and I had heaps of fun with the Australian team.
Jesse Moore was on that team too, so it’s been fantastic growing up and continuing to compete together over the years. The Vault final was especially memorable because it was my first international final. I’ll always look back on that competition really fondly.
What is it like travelling the world as an elite gymnast, and how do you stay focused for a competition whilst staying in another country?
Travel is a big part of the job. Living in Australia, so far from where a lot of competitions are held, you get used to spending plenty of time travelling.
Being in another country is exciting, but the competition comes first. It’s important not to lose sight of why you’re there. I stay focused by keeping my routine as normal as possible, keeping up with uni work where I can, and sticking to the things I’d usually do at home.
Where does your love of artistic gymnastics come from, and how did you get started in the sport?
I love the challenge of gymnastics and seeing how much better I can get. But the way I started was pretty simple: I had far too much energy.
When I was about two, Mum found me walking across the top of our backyard swing set. It was one of those swing sets that felt like they were in every Australian backyard. I’d climbed about two metres off the ground, walked across the top like it was a balance beam, then jumped off and commando-rolled out of it.
I was always climbing whatever I could find and jumping off, so Mum put me into gymnastics to burn off some of that energy. I fell in love with it. I’ve been involved in the sport in some capacity for almost 20 years now, and I’ve loved the journey.
Were there any gymnasts who inspired you when growing up, and do you have any other favourite sports to watch?
Epke Zonderland was a big one. His high bar routine in the 2012 Olympic final made me want to take gymnastics seriously.
Closer to home, Thomas Pichler was a big inspiration too. I went to a farewell training event before he left for Delhi in 2010, and the poster from that day has been on my wall ever since. Coming home with Commonwealth Games medals and seeing that same poster again was pretty surreal.
Outside gymnastics, I actually don’t watch much sport. I love doing it, but I’ve never been a big sports spectator. My other interests take up a fair bit of my time, and I enjoy them just as much.
How do you like to spend your time away from gymnastics?
A lot of my time outside gymnastics goes into engineering. I’m studying mechanical engineering at QUT, and I’ve also completed internships at Gilmour Space Technologies. I’ve been interested in space for as long as I’ve been interested in sport, so it’s a big part of my life. I enjoy having something different to focus on, and I find it helps me come back to training with a clearer head.
Otherwise, I love spending time with my partner. We enjoy going to the beach in summer and making the most of whatever time we have together.
What does a typical training day look like for you and how does it change in the lead-up to a major competition?
A typical day starts with training from 6:30 to 8am, focusing on strength and apparatus-specific basics. Then I’m usually at uni from about 9am to 3pm, either attending classes, catching up on assignments or studying for exams.
Afternoon training runs from 3:30 to 6:30pm and is more focused on routines and skills, with some more strength work as well. Then I head home, recover and get ready to do it all again the next day.
As a major competition gets closer, we back off some of the individual skill work and spend more time on routine sections. The training load also lightens a little so we’re ready to handle the competition.
Do you have any competitions coming up that you can tell us about or that you are targeting?
The next big competition is the World Championships in Rotterdam. It’s an important stepping stone as we work towards qualifying an Australian men’s team for the Olympics. Longer term, I want to compete at LA 2028 and Brisbane 2032, ideally as part of that team. Glasgow gave me a lot of confidence in what we can achieve together, and I’m keen to keep building on it.
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