HALESOWEN gymnastics star Kristian Thomas won gold at the European Gymnastics Championships.

Thomas, who has been training at Earls Gymnastics Club for 19 years, bagged Britain's first gold of the event in Montpellier last weekend.

It was the 26-year-old's first international individual apparatus victory and came after he scored 15.166 with a clean routine on the floor.

Thomas’s tumbles were hugely powerful and importantly very well controlled, with only the smallest hops on landing for the judges to deduct points. He put in a super routine under pressure to score a huge points tall and take the gold.

He was elated afterwards saying: "It's amazing, I’m absolutely over the moon. I’ve never won a floor medal at a major championships but I knew the routine I had was consistent and I was in contention. I was so nervous watching the other scores come in, to win gold is incredible."