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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Lucy Aplin

Jessica and Jennifer Gadirova: Everything you need to know about Olympic gymnastics twins

Identical twins, Jessica and Jennifer Gadirova are the two gifted gymnasts taking the Tokyo 2020 Olympics by storm.

The pair have made quite an impression already, winning bronze in the women's final on July 27 - making them the first Brits to win an Olympics teams final since 1928.

The talented twosome are now competing for a gold medal in the women's artistic gymnastics after getting impressive scores in the qualifying rounds.

The 16 years olds are competing in the category which champion Simone Biles sadly dropped out of - following the need to prioritise her mental health.

Both Jessica and Jennifer are very excited to represent team GB in their first summer olympics.

Jennifer & Jessica Gadirova are two twins and both members of the Great Britain Olympic Gymnastics team (Getty Images for British Olympic Association)

“I cannot believe this, this is more than a dream come true,” said Jennifer, speaking to The Guardian.

“My dream was to make the Olympics and experience it and even being here is an achievement in itself. Our biggest aim was to make Paris 2024. Let alone coming away with a medal. It is incredible and there are words to describe it.”

But who are they? Here's everything you need to know:

Who are Jessica and Jennifer Gadirova?

The twins were brought up in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire.

It was in Buckinghamshire that the girls first started competing and training - dedicating 30 hours a week to gymnastics.

Starting gymnastics at six years old, the girls have never had much training in dance - which is rare for gymnasts. Instead, they rely on their natural talent and coordination to carry their routines.

Jessica and Jennifer Gadirova parents

The Tokyo 2020 Olympics have been successful for team GB so far (Getty)

The girls were brought up by their parents who are from Azerbaijani

“In 2001, we moved to London," their father Natig Gadirov told Azerbaijani website Haqqin.az in April, which was translated by gymnastics blog Gymnovosti.

"And in 2004, we moved to Dublin for a few months for work. As a result, the girls now have both Irish and British citizenships. And I’m a citizen of Azerbaijan.”

“When we were younger we used to be hyper, climbing on everything,” Jennifer told the BBC in 2019.

“Our mum put us in lots of sports but we just clicked with gymnastics.”

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