Paralympics countdown . . . Libby’s last track act and Mel looks ahead

Monday 23rd August 2021

Double gold joy for Libby in Rio five years ago

Twitter link to interview with Libby Clegg

Libby Clegg is ready to hang up her track spikes after the Paralympics in Japan.

The Scottish athlete, who won gold at Glasgow 2014, is competing for GB and NI again in Tokyo – with the track and field action set to begin in the early hours of Friday morning (our time).

Clegg is one of nine Scottish athletes set to compete and will race in the T11 100m and 200m with the help of guide runner, Chris Clarke.

But Libby, set for her fourth Paralympics, told the Scottish Daily Mail that she will soon start to think about a change of sport.

‘Tokyo is going to be my last Games competing in athletics,’ she said.

‘However that does not mean it is going to be my last Paralympics. I am looking potentially at another sport.

‘I obviously love doing sport and I may have a look at Paralympic cycling and see how I get on in the velodrome.

‘I would like to stay in sport and help mentor athletes coming through the future programme, for example.

‘I want to be able to pass on my knowledge because I think sometimes you can be a bit lost (after stopping competing). So I’d like to be able to continue with that link. We will see where it goes after Tokyo.’

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Mel Woods interview in the Herald

Wheelchair racer Mel Woods is effectively at the other end of her competitive career to Libby and has admitted her surprise at being selected for Europeans and Paralympics this season.

It’s been a rapid rise for Mel and she will take time after Tokyo to see exactly how much time she can commit to her sport.

‘I thought maybe at the end of summer I’d be at a crossroads and that would be the time to make the call on whether I could keep going full-time or not,’ she told the Herald.

‘But now I’m going to keep going for a wee while yet. I’ve put off any major decisions for a bit longer.

‘When I get back from Tokyo, I will look again at what I want to achieve over the long term and what I need to do to achieve it.

‘Ultimately I would love to pursue this full-time but that would mean I need to get support to do that. It can’t be just a solo adventure. But it’s all been worth it so far.

‘All the hours training in the garage over the winter – going for something that I wasn’t sure I could achieve – have paid off.

‘I was training away and committing myself wholeheartedly to something that I had no idea how close I could get to.

‘But you have to back yourself and remind yourself why you’re doing all that. Getting to the Paralympics has given me confidence that this career is achievable and come 2024 I know I’ll be much better and stronger in Paris for the next one.’

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WANT TO READ MORE?

Now it’s nine! Scots selected for GB for Paralympics

Derek Rae interview with the Herald

Owen Miller interview with the Dunfermline Press

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Tags: Derek Rae, Libby Clegg, Mel Woods, Paralympics, Tokyo 2020 Paralympics

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