07/04/2021
So inspiring. We all need a purpose and to see organisations helping those achieve what used to be seen as impossible is incredible to see
“I was sat in hospital thinking ‘What can I do, what sport can I do now my legs are gone?’, because, like everyone, I'd seen the Paralympics happening, but had never thought about all that goes into it.
So I started looking, initially looking for what I thought were easy wins, and for some reason I thought of pole vaulting! I thought ‘Well there can’t be any amputees pole vaulting so I’ll do that!’
So I did that for a little bit, I also returned to sailing for Great Britain but eventually started doing long jump. I was still doing pole vault, and I managed to get to a point where I wasn’t going to break my neck doing it - but when I started working with British Athletics and and met my coach Roger, he said ‘You'd better stop doing that because it's just terrifying watching a guy with no legs trying to fling himself up on a pole!’ And yeah I think he had a fair point you know, I was getting enough injuries already just with the long jump!
It’s been a tough road, like most people I was naive to how hard it would be.
At the start I was constantly asking my management ‘Why am i not there yet? I think I'm good enough’, and you don’t realise when you’re training on your own or just in the UK how tough the standard is - my first international event when a lot of my competition were there was a real shock, I couldn't believe how far behind I was!
Eventually you learn, you watch these guys and you realise that they've been at it a long time so there's no shame in it that you're not as good as them yet.
I enjoy still trying to perfect it and get better at it, and every time I make a little gain it feels great and every time I have a little fallback I make an excuse and try to find a way to make it not my fault!
But when I got into athletics I definitely felt I was in the right place and that's important - I definitely thought ‘I know this isn't going to be an easy journey but I know I'm in the right place and I'm doing something that I'm looking forward to every single day’.”
✍ Luke Sinnott |