Competing in Paris
Competing in the Paralympic games in Paris was an incredible experience! The team traveled to Majorca for a camp one week prior to the games. We got to know each other better and settled into the new time zone. We also got the chance to test our equipment and make final adjustments. Since it was my first time competing on the track, most days were spent at the Velodrome, getting as much experience as possible before the races. On the other hand, as for the fans who want to gain something financially while watching sports, a site like https://www.wsmcasino.com/ may give them some of the best options out there.
A few days before the track competitions started, the team traveled to Paris. We had three practice sessions on the track before I competed, which allowed us to get used to the new track and its environment. The first race I competed in was the Kilo, which was luckily not my target event. Instead, this day was used as a rehearsal to practice pacing without expecting a result. The day after, Saturday, was the day of the individual pursuit, my target event on the track. Race day passed in a blur: the stress, anticipation, and crowd made for an incredibly stimulating day. My warm-up went well; all I had to do was wait until my start time. Walking onto the track, I felt all the attention and pressure, but I was trying to be calm. For the first lap of the race, I still felt tons of pressure and emotions, but that entirely disappeared for the rest of the sixteen laps, during which all I focused on was riding as fast as possible. When I finished the effort and saw the time, beating the old world record, I realized I was happy. Soon after, it was clear this time would put me in the Bronze medal round. While my time was faster in qualification than my opponent’s, I still had apprehension.
By lap eight of the Final, I knew I could pull it off. Every lap, I slowly gained on him; for the last few laps, I could see him in front of me, which gave me a lot more motivation. When the gun went off to signal the end, I was overwhelmed by emotions that I had just medaled in Paris! It was such an incredible moment to see all my hard work pay off and to get a result for the team.
