One year on: The postponement of Tokyo 2020

Just a few days later, and for the first time during peacetime, the Olympic and Paralympic Games were postponed. In my Games leadership role as Chef de Mission I spend time with colleagues planning for a wide range of “what ifs” but the impact of the Covid-19 global pandemic is way beyond anything any of us have faced across multiple Games cycles and something that we as an organisation, as a team and as individuals have had to adapt to, as has the rest of the UK including our revered high performance system.

The postponement has tested our capacity, our resolve and our resilience and I am immensely proud and humbled by the athletes and support personnel who have roles within the NHS or in other key worker positions and the way they stepped up and stepped in to meet the challenge of Covid-19. I’m also proud of the way our Para sport community has responded to the impact of the pandemic and the way the wider system has collaborated to support all athletes to stay fit and healthy and to enable their return to training in Covid secure training environments.

Athlete health and wellbeing has been the number one priority during the past 12 months and so many athletes have demonstrated remarkable resilience and adaptability to continue their journey towards selection for ParalympicsGB this summer. In what has been a mammoth team effort I am hugely thankful to colleagues across the National Governing Bodies, the Home Country Sports Institutes, BPA, BOA and at UK Sport for their incredible hard work and diligence in delivering a safe return to training (and competition for some) and for the unerring support for the ambitions of Paralympic and Olympic athletes.

At the start of 2021 - ‘Games year’ - there was still uncertainty, but communication started to shift from ‘if’ to ‘how’ the Games would take place safely and securely. In January, the announcement of the first six members of the ParalympicsGB team for Tokyo 2020 provided a lift to us all. Shooting athletes were in the media spotlight as the first of 19 sports was officially confirmed. Their stories of resilience and innovation in lockdown resonated and inspired. There will be many similar stories emerging as the selection process continues and we welcome more talented athletes to the ParalympicsGB team in the coming months as the pace quickens on our journey to Tokyo.

Earlier this month we hosted a two day ‘virtual’ Team Development workshop with the NGB Team Leaders, core team and other key stakeholders, all of whom are so vital to the success of the team at the Games. It was a massive collective effort to bring everyone together in what was an uplifting and energising experience. What stood out was not only the experience and professionalism of this team but also the incredible passion they bring to their roles. Feedback from the workshop was overwhelmingly positive with team mates voicing their delight to re-connect with colleagues (albeit virtually!). There was also palpable excitement that the Games is now just a few short months away and a feeling that everyone is pulling in the same direction to support the work of the NGBs in enabling athlete ambitions for Tokyo.

With our thoughts focussed on final preparations for the rescheduled Tokyo 2020 Games, I remain acutely aware that we must continue to take time to reflect and respect those that have lost loved ones, those who may still be shielding from the disease and those who have faced other challenges throughout a pandemic that has ravaged so much of our country and communities around the globe. And as the days count down, we will continue to work tirelessly to protect the health and wellbeing of our delegation and the athlete experience. A huge amount of work is going on behind the scenes as our vastly experienced and passionate core team continue to work collaboratively with like-minded system partners to create safe and secure environments from which exceptional performance can be delivered by all ParalympicsGB team members.

There is no doubt these Games will be very different – last weekend we heard that international spectators will not be able to travel to Tokyo 2020 to cheer on their heroes. Whilst disappointing for the athletes, we support this decision and will continue to work diligently to create a positive team experience for all both in Japan and back in the UK. Looking ahead there are still significant challenges to face and overcome, but in the week in which the Torch Relay begins in Japan I am positive that the rescheduled Tokyo Games will be a momentous opportunity to celebrate the human spirit and unite and inspire the nation once again – proving that ParalympicsGB truly is Impossible to Ignore.

……..

Watch now on YouTube: Catch up on our exclusive docu-series following our athletes’ journey to Tokyo ParalympicsGB +1