And if hasn't gone to plan for all of Britain's former champions this Games, it did for Hannah Cockroft, who collected her fourth consecutive T34 100m title and her eighth Paralympic gold last night at an electric Stade de France.
Cockroft's face was focused under her visor as she waited on the line and she accelerated away after 20 metres, head down, powerful shoulders pounding, beating her teammate, second-placed Kare Adenegan, by 1.19 seconds.
Cockroft was still grinning when she spoke to reporters after being roared across the line. "That's what we do it for," she said, "that support, it's amazing. I can't wipe the smile off my face, my wheels were vibrating from the noise, I knew Paris could do it and I'm so glad they did."
But being a champion year after year brings its downsides - namely, pressure.
"I'm making my life well hard doing this," she said. "It is scary, at the start line one kid was just saying 'Cockroft, Cockroft', and you know you're the one people are watching and you don't want to let people down - but that's why you do it.
This story is from the September 02, 2024 edition of The Guardian.
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This story is from the September 02, 2024 edition of The Guardian.
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