Rhys McClenaghan took home a silver medal from the pommel horse final at the Doha World Cup event. 

The Irish gymnast scored 15.033 on the apparatus and was only beaten to gold by an impressive 15.400 score from Kazakhstan’s Nariman Kurbanov.

It marked an improvement on McClenaghan’s 14.700 score last weekend which saw him place fifth in Cottbus.

“It was a good routine, his best one of the year, so that’s good,” said his coach Luke Carson.

“At each competition, he has demonstrated an improvement from the previous routine, so at this early stage in the competition season that’s excellent to see.

“Going into Baku we will focus on difficulty and improving execution.

“It was a very high-standard competition, a high-standard final today, so it’s excellent to be on the podium.”

McClenaghan’s teammates Adam Steele, Dominick Cunningham, Eamon Montgomery, and Halle Hilton concluded their apparatus qualifiers, with Hilton making first reserve for Saturday’s beam final. 

Next up is the last World Cup of the current series in Baku, Azerbaijan, next week.