A year ago, Alice Kinsella did not want to do gymnastics any more.
When she started treatment for acne, the Olympic bronze medallist did not think it might leave her on the verge of quitting her sport.
The 23-year-old, who will aim to help Great Britain defend their European women’s team title on Sunday, said she went on the contraceptive pill to help her skin condition but ended up developing anxiety and depression last year.
“I was so close to retiring,” Kinsella, who helped Great Britain to a surprise women’s team bronze at the Tokyo Games in 2021, told BBC Sport.
“I couldn’t train properly, couldn’t go for anything. Especially on bars, skills I’ve been going for since I was 10 – I couldn’t even go for those.
“My mind would be, ‘OK, you’re going to do it’. And then my body would stop and then I would just be in hysterics because it would just be so stressful.”
She came off the pill and now says she is in a “really good place”, and has already won all-around bronze at the Europeans in Rimini, Italy, this week.
She will now seek to add to her six continental medals when she lines up alongside a resurgent Becky Downie, Ruby Evans, Georgia Mae-Fenton and debutant Abigail Martin in Sunday’s team final.
British all-around champion Ondine Achampong has withdrawn after tearing her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), while Olympic bronze medallist Jessica Gadirova is also missing after sustaining a similar injury last year.