Celebrated British wheelchair racer Hannah Cockroft started the sport as a hobby but she never thought of winning a record 19th world championship title, a feat which she feels proud about.
Cockroft lit up the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Saturday, powering to her 19th world championship gold in the women’s 800m T34 race, where she clocked record-breaking 1:49.88s.
‘I actually didn’t know this was my 19th world title until someone told me after the race. But I’m absolutely buzzing. This is probably the performance I’m most proud of," she said.
"I actually got the chance to try wheelchair racing when I was 15. I just got an opportunity to get in a chair, absolutely loved it and just wanted to do it as a hobby.
"Then I got selected for my first world championships when I was 18 and just went for the experience and then it just became my job."
Cockroft, who won three gold medals and broke two championship records in the ongoing World Para Athletics Championships, hasn’t lost a major final since her world debut in Christchurch, New Zealand in 2011.
She has participated in four Paralympic Games and has nine Paralympic gold medals. "I love it. I love the freedom, I love the speed, I love the crowds and the support, the challenge and I love finding out how fast I can go. I love doing my sport," she said.
But Cockroft admitted that the competition is getting tougher with every passing year. "It definitely gets harder every single year, and there are always new girls coming through. The girls are getting quicker, so I have to find new ways to go quicker."
Her performance in the 800m was especially satisfying, a distance she once considered her weakest link.
"We’ve worked really hard on 800 this year, it’s all just clicked. I’ve learned how to relax and push myself more. I’ve slowed down the hand speed and focusing more on power. That’s taken a lot of re-learning," she said.
Her experience in India, where the World Para Athletics Championships are being held for the first time, was another highlight in a long list of international memories.
"My experience here in India has been brilliant, everyone’s been so friendly and so helpful and so welcoming, and it’s been very different to anything that I’ve experienced before. But I’ve been really happy to be here and it’s been lovely to be out on that track and be able to race in front of everybody," Cockroft said.
