GYMNASTICS: BETH Tweddle sat her first university exams on Monday after passing her latest gymnastics test with flying colours.

The 19-year-old from Bunbury collected the silver medal in the asymmetric bars at Saturday's World Cup Finals at Birmingham's National Indoor Arena, the first World Cup Final medal for a British woman.

Beth, who started a sports science degree at John Moores University in Liverpool in September, managed to combine her studies with training for one of the year's biggest competitions and even included a new routine in her specialist exercise.

She scored 9.612 for the bars and a personal best of 9.55 on the floor to finish just behind American Chellsie Memmell, with China's Ya Li third. But she was still pleased with her performance and said: 'It was the first time out with that routine so I have to be really pleased. The dismount was the only thing I was disappointed with. Other than that, I was very pleased.

'I am looking forward to the new season and, hopefully, I will be back up there. My full routine wasn't quite ready so I will be working on it back in the gym.'

Beth qualified for the bars competition by right following a series of Grand Prix events, but she received a wild card for the floor on Sunday following an impressive performance in the final Grand Prix of the year in Glasgow last month.

She finished fifth with a personal best score behind winner Daiane Dos Santos, of Brazil, and was delighted.

'Considering I was a wild card entry, I couldn't have asked for more,' she said.

Beth went from Birmingham to the BBC Sports Personality of the Year show and had to catch the 6am train from London to Liverpool on Monday morning for her exams.