Olivia Breen's 'long, tough journey' to gold at World Para Athletics Championships
By Richard Cooke
Last Updated: 18/07/17 5:41pm
Olivia Breen has been talking about the "long, tough journey" that led to her winning gold at the World Para Athletics Championships.
Breen, who's a Sky Academy Sports Scholar, won the T38 long jump with a personal best of 4.81 metres.
She has come a long way since finishing a disappointing 12th in the Paralympic final last year.
Breen told Sky Sports News: "I am so happy. It's been a long journey but I've finally done it. I've had a lot of ups and down and last year after Rio was such a low. I nearly thought about giving up my sport but I thought I am going to dig deep and give it another chance.
"I moved to Loughborough and got a new coach and it's been the best move ever. Winning the gold medal means so much and obviously it has been a tough journey."
Breen's personal best jump at the London Stadium would have been good enough for Paralympic gold last September and the memories of missing out in Rio still run deep.
"It was so harsh" she added. "I was obviously heartbroken. I was in such a low."
But since then Breen, who turns 21 later this month, has been determined to bounce back.
She went on: "I felt anger and I was upset. I'm not a person to give up. I'm a fighter. I've been a fighter since I was younger dealing with cerebral palsy. It hardened me up from the beginning. I was like I'm just going to do this. I couldn't have done it without my friends and family. Obviously Sky have been a big support."
Breen's World Championships are not over yet. She's competing in the 100 metres on Saturday and then attention turns to the future.
"I am aiming for the Commonwealth Games and the Europeans," she said. "To become Commonwealth Champion would be a dream come true. Then hopefully Tokyo 2020. That would be really exciting so fingers crossed."
