Interview with Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games on Channel 4
Category: InterviewWe sat down with Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson ahead of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games on Channel 4
You’re back for another Paralympic Games on Channel 4. What do the Paralympics mean to you?
The Paralympics is such a huge part of my life, but now I'm in danger of commentating at the Games more than I competed in them. The Paralympics are about bringing together elite sport, lots of stories, passion, drive and years of training, which can make or break an athlete in 15 seconds – what is not to love about that?
How have the Games evolved since you first took part?
There’s been a huge evolution in the Games. Seoul was my first games, no one knew about them, there wasn’t really any TV coverage and it was amazing being there. But the support from the British public wasn’t there. Each Games has grown and developed. 2012 set the bar so high. Paris has got a lot to live up to. It’s now their turn!
What are some of your favourite Paralympics memories from both competing and as a pundit?
From competing, my favourite moment will be winning my final gold medal which was for the 400m. It’s a brutal length, you’ve got to time it spot on. If you run out of breath five metres before the line, there’s no coming back from that. For me that was amazing. Commentating, it would be Jonnie Peacock winning gold in London. There will never be a moment like that again.
Channel 4 is broadcasting more hours of live sport with more ways to watch than ever before. How important is the Channel to the profile of the Paralympic Games?
Channel 4 is really important to the profile of the Games. It’s about making it available to people to watch at different times of day. There is something about the Paralympics that brings people together. They may only watch that sport once every four years, but it’s really important to the profile. We’ve got amazingly talented athletes in the British team and it’s really important that the public see them.
What are you most looking forward to about Paris 2024?
The athletics is always good. There will always
just be the special moments from athletes we didn’t expect to perform well who just step up.
I’m looking forward to seeing what Paris is going to do with the Games, there is a huge expectation. We’re going to see some young athletes who have never competed before but suddenly have that amazing step forward. It will be a couple of weeks of brilliant sport.
Are there certain events you get more excited about than others?
I love watched the men and women’s 1,500m. It’s incredible. It’s three minutes, where you
can maybe make one mistake but can’t come back from. It’s brutal. There is so much tactic involved that I just love. When it goes right for an athlete, it’s perfection. For me it’s the blue-ribbon event of the Paralympics.
And what about athletes this year, who are your ones to watch?
We’ve got loads of talented athletes this year who will be competing. Olivia Breen who is Commonwealth gold medalist sprinter. Hannah Cockroft. Dave Weir, he could just pull something amazing out of the bag.
We can’t forget you’re going to be in Paris!
Have you been before? What’s your favourite thing to do?
I’ve competed in Paris quite a few times, it’s great. The people, the French athletes are really supportive. It’s the kind of city where you can sit in a cafe and just watch the world go by. I’m probably not going to have much downtime but at the end after the closing ceremony, maybe!