SaqBy Milly McEvoy in Paris
Claire Cashmore admitted she was relieved to win silver as she had a less than ideal preparation for the Paris 2024 para-triathlon.
The Redditch native has struggled with injuries over the past two years, having to reduce her training load to compensate.
And then in Paris, a postponement hampered preparations, the 36-year-old also having experienced a failure of her brakes during the reconnaissance of her bike.
“It was tough, it was a real relief to get off the bike,” said Cashmore, who is one of more than 1,000 elite athletes on UK Sport’s National Lottery-funded World Class programme, providing them with full-time training, access to the world’s best coaches and pioneering medical support, which has been vital on their path to Paris 2024.
“I had a nightmare during the recce, my brakes failed, so I went in a bit of a panic on the bike, but it was great.
“Winning the money is such a relief, I felt a lot of pressure coming in.
“With the delays, it’s all about adapting and preparing for whatever comes next.
“It was amazing to see my family and friends there, I just smiled the whole way.”
Cashmore finished second behind American Grace Norman, who raced away to reclaim her gold medal from Rio.
Defending champion and Cashmore’s compatriot Lauren Steadman took bronze as the pair contributed to ParalympicsGB’s five medals on a bumper day of triathlon.
All 11 triathlon races were held on the same day after water quality issues forced the postponement of Sunday’s races.
This means Cashmore left while her longtime boyfriend, Dave Ellis, was still competing.
Former swimmer Cashmore admitted after Tokyo that Ellis’ retirement due to a mechanical problem with her bike affected her own race the following day, as she had to settle for bronze.
But the joy was doubled for the duo when Cashmore was informed of Ellis’ redemptive gold medal as she celebrated silver.
She added: “Dave is the most determined and hard-working person I have ever met.
“Finally, he got what he deserved, especially after Tokyo.
“I was so stressed about not being able to watch it, it’s a shame I couldn’t watch and enjoy that moment, but I’m so happy he had his moment.
“I can’t tell you how resilient he is. He’s won Worlds, Commonwealth and everything since. The work he puts in every day is inspiring and he deserves everything he gets.
“He is a man of few words, we are poles apart in that respect.
“He was off the bike when I was going in so I had to block him. You have to be selfish on race day. I heard he had an incredible swim, that’s the last thing I heard.”
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