Team GB past and present Olympians looking ahead to what promises to be an exciting games in Paris
Team GB have finished the last four Olympics in the top four in the medal tables. A stunning streak that they wish to continue as they head over the water to France for the 2024 summer games. So how will they get on? We spoke to some representatives to find out more.
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00:00Firstly, Richard, just tell us a bit about the roles that teachers played in your fantastic
00:07success, you know, throughout all those gold medals and how sort of important they were
00:12for you.
00:13I've been really fortunate enough to have so many people around me that have given me
00:17the tools and the support that's needed for that success. I think the opportunity that
00:24we have at this present time, it's about kind of giving back to those individuals that have
00:30supported me with their timeless support and showing how thankful we are for that success.
00:36And how good are the Games for actually inspiring the next generation? Obviously, London 2012
00:41will have been watched by so many who are actually competing now in 2024.
00:47When I go around to sporting environments and school environments, showing the videos
00:52of London 2012, it's a great moment to share how we came together as a country to really
00:59support not just sport for Olympians and Paralympians, but also the legacy from that, whether it's
01:06new training facilities or coaching structures, or liberating children around the possibilities.
01:14That's why it's really important that when we put on those tracksuits, we feel it's more
01:19than just the sport. It's about the legacy we leave. And that is so important.
01:25And France being so close, there's an opportunity to jump on the train or jump on the ferry
01:31over to France and actually watch some high level sport. Or when the successful athletes
01:38come back into your community, really celebrate that success and be liberated to be a sportsman
01:43or woman in the future.
01:44You know, the wonderful thing about the Olympics, the Paralympics that every athlete would say
01:47is the fact that it's the multi-sport feel. You walk in with people from your own country
01:52in the same kit, you know, something very wonderfully kind of patriotic and exciting
01:57about wearing the flag and having the rings on the kit. And you're walking in with fellow
02:04swimmers and tennis players and divers and archers and track and field and all these
02:09different sports you wouldn't normally spend time with. You are one team.
02:13Yeah, I'll be trying to take it in as much as I can because of the experience, but I'll
02:19be very much so there with the mindset of I am the one who is going to become Olympic
02:23champion. Being in Paris is just a little short trip over the water. The time difference
02:28isn't a lot. And yeah, I wouldn't mind wherever it is. Any competition I've been to in Paris
02:33has been quite well run and there's loads of fans and they're very vocal. So I think
02:37it'll be a good, it's a good place to have a type of competition.
02:42Because I felt like the kind of 12, 13 year old kid again that was like dreaming that
02:47this could happen. I mean, I was up against two of the best paddlers in the world to earn
02:52my spot. Only one can go for each country. And it just so happens in Britain that we've
02:56got three of us that are all winning medals at senior level.