With the extinguishing of the Olympic flame at the Closing Ceremony of the Paralympic Games this Sunday, we said goodbye to what was truly the most remarkable Olympic Games in living memory. No other Games has looked like it, and certainly for our athletes no Olympic Games has ever felt like it. Despite it all; the uncertainty, the stringent COVID measures, and a year’s extra pressure, they delivered something remarkable.
The athletes of Rocket Sports made headlines worldwide. Breaking British, Olympic and World records and history. We’re lost for words (despite the fact we’ve been able to write an article about it….!)
Let’s start with Laura and Jason Kenny, because how could we miss them – individually the most decorated male and female Olympians in British history, and as a couple more successful than many countries have ever been in Olympic history.
What more could we ask of them. Delivering gold after gold, Games after Games and bringing a smile to our faces in every interview. Their love of the Games and sheer determination and humbleness to ‘just keep turning up’ and proving that hard work in your garage can still get you the gold medal shone through in the velodrome. Securing a gold and silver medal apiece at the Games, we witnessed cycling at its best, once again.
Jason had us in trembling heaps during his Keirin heats but then delivered the ultimate Keirin masterclass in the final, leaving everyone lost for words. And Laura, becoming the first ever Olympic Madison champion with teammate Katie Archibald. Was there a dry eye in the house? We can answer for you; no, there was not.
Also in the velodrome, Josie Knight earned her Olympic debut in the Team Pursuit with Laura and a silver medal to boot. Not only that, they set a new world record in the heats. A phenomenal start to her Olympic career only two years after joining the British Cycling Performance squad.
More action on two wheels gave us another nail biting, really-in-need-of-a-sit-down-in-a-dark-room final in the BMX Freestyle park. We are of course talking about Charlotte Worthington in that final following that fall. Having seen Charlotte retain her World Number 3 title at the World Champs just weeks before, we knew her rival, and consistent World Number 1, Hannah Rogers was the one to keep an eye on. But with a world first trick Charlotte landed an Olympic gold medal, straight into the record books and onto every newspaper front page.
Then onto the gymnastics floor where Joe Fraser continued to make parallel bar history for Great Britain. As the youngest member of the men’s Artistic Gymnastics team, Joe took on responsibility beyond his years competing in more apparatus and finals than any other team member. Making the Team final, the All Around Individual final and the Parallel Bars final. Finishing in the top 10 in every final, Joe became the first British gymnast to ever compete in an Olympic Parallel Bars final.
Another top ten finish saw Evie Richards achieve her lifelong dream of competing at an Olympic Games. Evie raced an incredibly tough mountain bike course that had a lot of last minute changes due to the storms flooding the track on which fellow Team GB teammate Tom Pidcock had won gold the previous day. With a seventh place finish Evie lit her own Olympic flame fuelling her training and races in preparation for Paris 2024.
Geraint Thomas competed in a phenomenal fourth Olympic Games in both the Individual Time Trial and the Road Race. The double Olympic Champion (Team Pursuit) was back on the road less than a week after completing the Tour de France racing in tough conditions out in the humidity and heat of Tokyo to clinch twelfth place in an incredibly tight and fast TT.
