Charlotte opened her Commonwealth Games account in the team event. Photo: SpexSG/ Andy Chua
National gymnast Charlotte Phoon is the youngest member of the 53-strong Team Singapore contingent at just 15, but she has spent nearly her entire life dedicated to the sport.
Having trained in gymnastics for 12 years, including the last seven in the national setup, Charlotte has already competed at top international events, including the Junior World Championships in Pasay City, Philippines, last November.
She was Singapore's best-performing gymnast at last June's Artistic Gymnastics Junior Asian Championships in South Korea, finishing eighth in the individual all-around with a score of 45.565. Teammate Ariel Lin was the next highest-placed Singaporean, coming in 15th.
There, she also reached the balance beam final, where she placed eighth with a score of 11.033.
The teenager will turn 16 in November, making the 2026 season her first as a senior.
The Singapore Chinese Girls' School student, who made her Commonwealth Games debut on Saturday (July 25, Glasgow time) in the team event, embraced the challenge with a mix of nerves and excitement.
“I'm excited and grateful for the opportunity to represent Singapore. There were definitely some nerves, but I was looking forward to competing on such a big stage and meeting gymnasts from other countries.”
One gymnast Charlotte was particularly excited to meet was Australia’s Georgia Godwin, 28, who added a team gold on Saturday night to her existing collection of two golds, four silvers and two bronzes from previous editions.
“I'm hoping to learn from the competition and the athletes around me, and gain a better understanding of what it takes to compete at the senior international level. I believe this experience will help me grow as a gymnast.”
In the lead-up to the Games, she also leaned on her more experienced teammate, Emma Yap, for guidance.
Yap finished 15th in the all-around final at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
“She shared her experiences and advised me to focus on myself and treat this competition like any other.”
Rather than placing pressure on herself for results, Charlotte approached the competition with a cool head.
“It is an honour to be given this opportunity. My mentality was to stay calm and treat this competition as a valuable learning experience.”
True to that approach, Charlotte delivered a commendable performance on the vault, scoring 12.350 to contribute to Singapore’s overall tally of 140.100.
Together with Emma Goh, Alena Tan and sisters Emma and Amanda Yap, she helped Singapore finish seventh out of 12 teams.
Amanda and Alena secured places in Sunday’s (Jul 26) individual all-around final, finishing 10th and 21st with scores of 50.050 and 44.850 respectively.
Amanda, who became Singapore’s first World Artistic Gymnastics Championships finalist last October, also made the balance beam and floor exercise final with scores of 12.950 and 12.500 respectively.
Her performance on the beam was a standout, with her second-place finish among 47 competitors putting her behind only Australia’s Breanna Scott, a 2022 Games team silver medallist who also won team gold with Godwin on the night.
Older sister Emma's score of 12.200 puts her as second reserve for the floor exercise final.
A day earlier, Singapore’s men’s artistic gymnasts, Jovi Loh, Asher Pua and Abdul Barr Abdulattif, combined for a total score of 151.95 in the team event to sit ninth out of 11.
Loh’s score of 72.40 secured him a place in the individual all-around final on Sunday (Jul 27), qualifying in 15th position, while Pua’s total of 62.75 saw him finish 26th, making him the fourth reserve for the final.
Barr scored 11.25 on the horizontal bar and 5.55 on the parallel bars, finishing 28th and 43rd, respectively, in the apparatus standings.
The 23rd Commonwealth Games are held in Glasgow from 23 July to 2 August 2026. For the latest Team Singapore coverage and news, follow Team Singapore on their social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok) or visit the official Team Singapore website.