22 | BIGISSUE.COM FROM 24 AUGUST 2020“I’ve always loved athletics,” Jonnie Peacock says. “It’s
straight-up raw, who can put down the most power, who
can throw this object furthest. It’s down to how far the
human body can be pushed.
“I don't know what it is, pressure just brings the best
out in me. I don’t really feel the pressure though. In my
head, it’s like a computer programme. I’m not taking
everything in, thinking, oh my god there’s loads of people
here. I’m too busy thinking about the technical things I
have to do. If I make a mistake, it’s the difference between
winning and coming last. If I don’t hit a position straight
away, I’ve lost the race in three steps.”
One of the first lessons Peacock learned is that during
a race, the other competitors are almost an irrelevance. “As
a sprinter you have a lane that separates you and the other
athletes so there’s no point worrying about them because
there’s nothing I can do to control the other guys. The only
thing I can change is what happens between these lines
in my lane.
“Easier said than done,” Peacock adds. “Those 60
metres of a race I'm at the front, I always worry someone’s
going to fly past me. You get quite stressed, the Deirdre
Barlow neck comes out. I’ve learned to deal with that
better, slowly, as time progresses. And you can translate
that into life.”
Peacock had knee surgery in December and couldn’t
walk in January, so is reasonably pleased the Paralympics’
postponement allows him more time to train.
“It was going to be tight but I was relatively confident
I could get back to where I was,” he says. “It's just that it
might not have been enough. We need to progress again,
we need to see improvements.”
Will a fresh generation of athletes inspired by his
exploits at London 2012 be chasing after him?
“I hope not! When I started school and tried to look
for disability sport around me, it was impossible to find
information about anything local to me. Now there are
loads of websites that allow you to punch in your postcode
and they can see everything from yoga to martial arts. I
would definitely argue that wouldn’t have been the case
had 2012 not been as successful as it was.”
But availability and accessibility to sporting
opportunities, like Peacock’s track time, can always
be improved.
“No one should ever be happy with where we are
because that’s how we progress. If we can do it better, then
we should try and change it,” he says.Athletes are always pushing for faster, higher, stronger in competition and this creates
impact that spreads far beyond sport. Twelve years after Dr Guttmann’s first Stoke
Mandeville Games, the first Paralympics took place in Rome, running in parallel, hence
‘para’, with the 1960 Olympics, with 400 athletes from 23 countries taking part. This
began a tradition that grew every four years until 1980, when Moscow refused to host
the Paralympics because the Soviets denied having any disabled people in the country
(Arnhem in the Netherlands stepped in to host that year).
This attitude persisted in Russia when Tatyana McFadden was born in St Petersburg
(then Leningrad) in 198 9. She had spina bifida and her mother was unable to look after her
so Tatyana spent the first few years of her life in ‘Orphanage number 13’, learning to walk
on her hands to keep up with other children.
In 1993 a US delegation visited. Deborah McFadden, then commissioner of disabilities
for the US government, saw Tatyana and was determined not to leave the orphanage
without her, adopting and bringing her home to Maryland.
“Coming to the US, I was very sick,” Tatyana McFadden recalls now. “My legs were
actually behind my back. I had 10 surgeries, I was always in and out of the hospital. The
doctors thought my life was going to be below average, my parents thought otherwise.
They are the ones that put me in a local sports programme. I’m so thankful for that.
McFadden took up wheelchair racing aged eight. “I feel like the common theme for
Paralympians is that sport gave us a rebirth in life. It gave me a chance to dream.”
She took part in her first Paralympics in Athens in 200 4, aged 15 and since then has
won 17 Paralympic medals, including three golds in London and four in Rio. She was also
the first person ever to win a marathon Grand Slam in the same year (coming first in the
four major marathons, Boston, Chicago, New York and London), which she then repeated
another three times.‘A chance to dream’
Tatyana McFadden
has won 17
Paralympic medalsBlaze of glory
The opening ceremony of
the game-changing 2012
London Paralympics
Image:MikeEhrmann/GettyImagesImage:Netflix22 | BIGISSUE.COM FROM 24 AUGUST 2020
“I’vealwayslovedathletics,”JonniePeacocksays.“It’s
straight-upraw,whocanputdownthemostpower,who
canthrowthisobjectfurthest.It’sdowntohowfarthe
humanbodycanbepushed.
“Idon'tknowwhatitis,pressurejustbringsthebest
outinme.I don’treallyfeelthepressurethough.Inmy
head,it’slikea computerprogramme.I’mnottaking
everythingin,thinking,ohmygodthere’sloadsofpeople
here.I’mtoobusythinkingaboutthetechnicalthingsI
havetodo. IfImakeamistake, it’sthedifferencebetween
winningandcominglast.IfI don’thita positionstraight
away,I’velosttheraceinthreesteps.”
OneofthefirstlessonsPeacocklearnedisthatduring
a race,theothercompetitorsarealmostanirrelevance.“As
a sprinteryouhavea lanethatseparatesyouandtheother
athletessothere’snopointworryingaboutthembecause
there’snothingI candotocontroltheotherguys.Theonly
thingI canchangeiswhathappensbetweentheselines
inmylane.
“Easiersaidthandone,”Peacockadds.“Those 60
metresofa raceI'matthefront,I alwaysworrysomeone’s
going to fly past me. You get quite stressed, the Deirdre
Barlow neck comes out. I’ve learned to deal with that
better, slowly, as time progresses. And you can translate
that into life.”
Peacock had knee surgery in December and couldn’t
walk in January, so is reasonably pleased the Paralympics’
postponement allows him more time to train.
“It was going to be tight but I was relatively confident
I could get back to where I was,” he says. “It's just that it
might not have been enough. We need to progress again,
we need to see improvements.”
Will a fresh generation of athletes inspired by his
exploits at London 2012 be chasing after him?
“I hope not! When I started school and tried to look
for disability sport around me, it was impossible to find
information about anything local to me. Now there are
loads of websites that allow you to punch in your postcode
and they can see everything from yoga to martial arts. I
would definitely argue that wouldn’t have been the case
had 2012 not been as successful as it was.”
But availability and accessibility to sporting
opportunities, like Peacock’s track time, can always
be improved.
“No one should ever be happy with where we are
because that’s how we progress. If we can do it better, then
we should try and change it,” he says.
Athletes are always pushing for faster, higher, stronger in competition and this creates
impact that spreads far beyond sport. Twelve years after Dr Guttmann’s first Stoke
Mandeville Games, the first Paralympics took place in Rome, running in parallel, hence
‘para’, with the 1960 Olympics, with 400 athletes from 23 countries taking part. This
began a tradition that grew every four years until 1980, when Moscow refused to host
the Paralympics because the Soviets denied having any disabled people in the country
(Arnhem in the Netherlands stepped in to host that year).
This attitude persisted in Russia when Tatyana McFadden was born in St Petersburg
(then Leningrad) in 198 9. She had spina bifida and her mother was unable to look after her
so Tatyana spent the first few years of her life in ‘Orphanage number 13’, learning to walk
on her hands to keep up with other children.
In 1993 a US delegation visited. Deborah McFadden, then commissioner of disabilities
for the US government, saw Tatyana and was determined not to leave the orphanage
without her, adopting and bringing her home to Maryland.
“Coming to the US, I was very sick,” Tatyana McFadden recalls now. “My legs were
actually behind my back. I had 10 surgeries, I was always in and out of the hospital. The
doctors thought my life was going to be below average, my parents thought otherwise.
They are the ones that put me in a local sports programme. I’m so thankful for that.
McFadden took up wheelchair racing aged eight. “I feel like the common theme for
Paralympians is that sport gave us a rebirth in life. It gave me a chance to dream.”
She took part in her first Paralympics in Athens in 200 4, aged 15 and since then has
won 17 Paralympic medals, including three golds in London and four in Rio. She was also
the first person ever to win a marathon Grand Slam in the same year (coming first in the
four major marathons, Boston, Chicago, New York and London), which she then repeated
another three times.‘Achancetodream’
TatyanaMcFadden
haswon 17
ParalympicmedalsBlaze of glory
The opening ceremony of
the game-changing 2012
London Paralympics
Image:
MikeEhrmann/GettyImagesImage:Netflix