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Three Australians are in action on the Izu Velodrome on Day 3 of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games with Alistair Donohoe contesting the 4000m individual pursuit C5 while Amanda Reid and Gordon Allan will line up in the men’s and women’s time trials C1-3.
Donohoe believes he comes into Tokyo a different man than the one who left Rio five years ago after a mixed bag of performances and some rotten luck.
“When you’re 21 it’s all bright eyed and exciting and overwhelming,” Donohoe said. “In Tokyo I’ve got five more years, more strength, more training, and have made more mistakes, but I think I’m just a lot calmer, more appreciative and armed with knowledge of what to expect and how to approach the Games because it’s such a unique experience.
“I think I understand the challenges that it’s going to throw at me and I feel better equipped to to bring out my best performance on the day.”
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In 2016 he celebrated silver on the track in the individual pursuit and on the road in the time trial but in the road race he was brought down metres from the line when Ukrainian Yehor Dementyev veered off his line as Donohoe was coming through on the fence.
Donohoe believes he has unfinished business here in Tokyo.
“I’d gone in with ambitious goals in Rio and I was favourite in a few events, but really targeted the ones that I was weaker in to give myself the best chance to win three gold medals,” he said. “So to come away with two silvers and get robbed of that last gold I think I definitely left unfulfilled.”
After the road race crash and still leading the race, Donohoe jumped up and ran across the line before collapsing but he did not take his bike with him and because placings are determined on when your front wheel crosses the line he was not awarded the win or a place on the podium.
Donohoe says the enforced COVID delay had been a blessing for him.
“2019 was a really successful year for me and in 2020 I had a lot of things I wanted to do and to focus on. It was like trying to fit the whole year’s curriculum into one term, which meant it would have to run like clockwork and be seamless. Then COVID hit and I remember thinking ‘great now I can really work on everything in isolation through to completion, physically and psychologically’.”
“I had a year of improvements, pretty impressive improvements and I used the time as efficiently as I could and I’m so thankful for it.”
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Reid also has a rival from Rio to overcome here in Tokyo. She’ll come up against Alyda Norbruis (NED) who beat her for gold in 2016, but since then Reid has set the C2 world record and is a three-time World Champion over 500 metres.
“You can never go in saying you’re the favourite because you never know what everybody else has done and you just have to go in and do your best, or what you can do on the day,” 24-year-old Reid.
“But I’m hoping to break my mark again – that would be nice. I’ve done the training so hopefully the training will pay off.”
The third Australian in action is Allan who will make his Paralympic debut on the Izu Velodrome when he contests the 1000m time trial an event in which he claimed silver at the 2019 World Championships and bronze at the 2020 World Championships.
Australians in action on Friday at Izu Velodrome:
– 10:00 (11:00 AEST) – Women’s 500m Time Trial C1-3 Final Amanda Reid (C2)
– 11:30 (12:30 AEST) – Men’s 4000m individual pursuit C5 Qualifying – Alistair Donohoe
– 13:20 (14:20 AEST) – Men’s 500m Time Trial C1-3 Final – Gordon Allan
– 15:55 (16:55 AEST) – Men’s 4000m individual pursuit C5 Final – Alistair Donohoe*
*Pending qualification results
By: Paralympics Australia
Posted: 27 August 2021
