Watching Paris 2024 from the stands has only made pole vault starlet Sophie Ashurst more desperate to fulfil her own Olympic dream.
Ashurst, 21, is a rising star in British athletics, having captained the British squad at the 2022 World Athletics U20 Championships, where she finished sixth.
Soaking up the summer of sport, she was in the Stade de France to watch Team GB postergirl Keely Hodgkinson secure a famous gold in the women’s 800m.
It was a moment particularly special for the Sale vaulter, who knew exactly what Hodgkinson had been through on her journey to the top, having trained alongside her at Sportcity Manchester.
And after witnessing her triumph from the sidelines, she’s now even more desperate to experience Olympic glory herself.
“Seeing it live was very inspiring,” she said. “Just being a part of it, being in the atmosphere, it was definitely the best stadium I've ever been in to watch a Games.
“I trained in Sportcity so it was just really cool to say that you actually know someone and you've seen her [Hodgkinson] put in all the work behind the scenes.
“You get to see her do her sessions and then to see her win an Olympic gold is like, wow, she deserves it. The crowd was amazing so it was really cool.
“A lot of people said ‘do you want to be there in four years?’ That is the goal and I've been really lucky to experience the atmosphere.
“It's something I want to work towards. I've still got a lot of work to put in, but it's definitely added fuel to train and hopefully make that dream a reality.”
Ashurst is one of 50 athletes supported by Pitching In as part of its long-standing partnership with SportsAid, providing crucial financial support as well as offering development opportunities through workshops and visits.
A pole vaulting aficionado, Ashurst did not experience as much joy as she would have hoped watching her fellow Brits competing in her specialist sport in Paris.
After Tokyo bronze medallist Holly Bradshaw only managed to clear one bar in qualifying, Team GB medal hope Molly Caudery crashed out in the opening round after failing to clear the 4.55m bar.
“I know pole vault and you can have the best feeling, you can have the best warm up of your life, but sometimes you knock it off with the smallest of margins and it just wasn’t her day,” she added. “I saw the interview after and it was quite emotional, it was hard.
“I had a lot of people asking me why didn't she come in lower, but when your PB is 4.92, you normally come in about 30 centimetres below your PB, so 4.55 is a comfortable height and it made sense to come in and conserve energy for the final. It went wrong, but she'll learn from it and she's young.
“Also, 4.40 shouldn't make an Olympic final, if that makes sense. It's never been that low and to have 20 girls make an Olympic final was just wild.
“For a lot of people saying ‘if she'd come in at 4.40, she would have made it’, she wouldn't have made it because everyone would have had to clear 4.55 to get in. A lot of people didn't really understand that on that basis.”
Entain, owner of Ladbrokes and Coral, is proud to be championing the next generation of British sporting heroes by providing talented young athletes with financial support and personal development opportunities in partnership with SportsAid. Visit entaingroup.com to find out more.
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