Olympic pommel horse odds: Max Whitlock seeking a golden goodbye

The men's pommel horse final takes place on Saturday as Britain's Max Whitlock bids to make history with an unprecedented third gold medal in the event.

Each competitor has one minute on the pommel horse to convince the judges they are worthy of a medal in this field of eight.

Whitlock is already the most successful pommel horse worker in Olympics history with three medals in the event and he is the man to beat in what will be the final event of his storied career.

Pommel Horse odds

• Max Whitlock - 9/4
• Rhys McClenaghan - 12/5
• Stephen Nedoroscik - 10/3
• Takaaki Sugino - 17/2
• Oleg Verniaiev - 17/2
• Nariman Kurbanov  - 12/1
• Woong Hur - 14/1
• Loran de Munck - 18/1

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(Odds were correct at time of publishing and subject to change)

Max Whitlock

Whitlock made his Olympics debut in London in 2012 when he was the youngest competitor in the pommel horse final, picking up the bronze medal.

The Essex-native returned in 2016 and claimed gold, then went to Tokyo four years later and became a two-time champion at the Olympics.

Whitlock is also a three-time world champion, four-time European champion and four-time Commonwealth champion but he took some time off after the Games in Japan and didn't compete in 2022.

He returned at the 2023 World Championships and finished fifth in the pommel horse final.

Whitlock is bidding to become the first man to win three successive gold medals and Saturday's outing will be the final event of what has been an incredible career in gymnastics.

Rhys McClenaghan

Ireland's Rhys McClenaghan is rated as Whitlock's biggest rival after establishing himself as a dominant force in the event over the last few years.

The 25-year-old won gold at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships and his career has been on an upward trajectory since he finished seventh in the Tokyo final.

Hailing from Newtownards in County Down, McClenaghan is already the most decorated Irish gymnast of all time and has enjoyed success over Whitlock previously - beating the British star in the 2018 Commonwealth Games and the European Championships.

Stephen Nedoroscik

Team USA's Stephen Nedoroscik already has a bronze medal in France in the team event and he will be hoping to claim an individual honour on Saturday.

The 25-year-old from Massachusetts is competing in the Olympics for the first time but he did win the World Championships in 2021.

Nedoroscik qualified for the Olympics in second place behind McClenaghan in an incredibly close qualifier. Both men scored 15.200 but the Irishman advanced to the final as the top-ranked gymnast due to a higher execution score.

Takaaki Sugino

Like Nedoroscik, Takaaki Sugino has already claimed a medal at the Olympics as he was a member of the Japan team that claimed gold ahead of China and the USA.

The 25-year-old has represented his country at various FIG World Cup competitions and will be hoping to emulate the achievements of compatriot Kazuma Kaya, who claimed a Bronze medal in this event in Tokyo.

Oleg Verniaiev

Ukraine's Oleg Verniaiev is a vastly experienced gymnast across multiple disciplines and he already has one gold medal to his name, taking the top honour in the parallel bars in the 2016 edition of the Games.

The 30-year-old also won the Silver medal in the all-round event that year but is yet to win an individual medal in a major tournament in pommel horse.

Nariman Kurbanov

Kazakhstan's Nariman Kurbanov has come agonisingly close to medals at the World Championships having finished in fourth place in both 2021 and 2022.

This will be his first appearance at the Olympics, and he is a two-time winner of the Asian Championships having taken gold in both 2023 and earlier this year.

Woong Hur

Woong Hur initially missed out on a place at the Olympics but was selected by the Korea Gymnastics Association as a replacement for Kim Han-sol, who suffered an injury in training which ruled him out of the showpiece event in France.

Hur has enjoyed some success in 2024, however, claiming Bronze at the Cottbus World Cup - where Kurbanov claimed gold. 

Loran de Munck

Loran de Munck of the Netherlands is very much the outsider in this eight-man field but the 25-year-old from Haarlmem has been in good form in 2024, claiming a Silver medal at the European Championships in Rimini, Italy, earlier this year.