Interview with Ed Jackson ahead of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games on Channel 4

27 August 2024

We sat down with Ed Jackson ahead of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games on Channel 4. 

You’re back presenting coverage of the Paralympic Games on Channel 4. Are you thrilled to be back? 
I can’t wait to be back. The first time I did this we were in Tokyo which actually wasn’t that long ago, and I loved every second of it. A lot has happened between then and now, time has flown and I’m really excited to get back into it.  

Tell us what you’ll be getting up to this year?  
This year, I’m going to be in the athletics stadium presenting all the action there, which is really exciting as it’s new for me. In Tokyo I covered the wheelchair rugby and various other sports, but I never made it to the athletics so I’m really looking forward to being in the stadium and the brilliant atmosphere. 

What are you most looking forward to about Paris 2024? 
I’m most looking forward to the sport because it blew me away in Tokyo. London 2012 was when I first got into the Paralympics and the thing that really shocked me was just how high quality the level of sport was, then to see it up close and personal in Tokyo only reaffirmed that. I’m mad about sport, that’s my background and being able to experience elite athletes up close is incredible. 

Are there certain events you get more excited about than others?  
Obviously I’m going to say my favourite event is the athletics because that’s what I’m presenting this year. Wheelchair rugby is quite close to my heart having been a rugby player before, but they’re completely different sports and obviously GB had an amazing outing in Tokyo. I also really enjoy all of the racquet sports, it’s quite hard to get your head around how skillful those guys and girls are. One of the most amazing things about the Paralympics is the incredible cross section of abilities, sports, technical disciplines and everyone should try and take in as much of it as they can. 

Can you tell us a little bit about what it’s like being a part of the Channel 4 team? Can you give us a glimpse behind the scenes? 
I don’t know how much I can tell you… It’s an awful lot of fun, it’s a great group, it’s like a family. A lot of us probably haven’t seen each other since Tokyo so there’ll be a lot of catching up. There is such a fun atmosphere, which echoes the Paralympics. It’s high-level, elite sport but it’s fun, it’s a celebration and we get to be a part of that. 

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 Paralympics?  
My first proper insight into Paralympic sport came through Channel 4. I knew it was coming to London in 2012, but it was only after watching the Games on TV in the first week that I made sure I went to see it live in the second week. That was before I had a disability. Then a few years later when I had my spinal cord injury, my mind went straight away to ‘I could be a Paralympian’ and that was all because of the exposure I’d been given through Channel 4. From a personal perspective, I’ve got a huge amount of gratitude for that, but then for the wider disabled community it has made a massive difference. This is my version of the story of the impact of Channel 4, but there are thousands, hundreds of thousands, of versions of that same story from within the disabled community. The exposure Channel 4 has given to the Paralympics and to disability sport has helped a lot of people.  

This year, Channel 4 is hoping to encourage more disabled people to try different sports through Every Body Moves. How vital is it to get more people in at the grassroots? 
The Every Body Moves campaign is absolutely vital. It doesn’t matter what your circumstances, everyone can move that little bit more. Whether it’s walking up the stairs or going out in your wheelchair one or two times more a day. Movement is probably the most important factor to positive health to any individual so trying to promote that is integral to the nation’s health.   

We can’t forget you’re going to be in Paris! Have you been before? What’s your favourite thing to do?   
We’re going to be in Paris, one of the world’s greatest cities and there’s all the obvious things to do but, actually, for me it’s all about getting lost down the little alleys, finding the little boulangeries and restaurants. When I’m not at the athletics stadium, I think I’ll mostly be eating.  

How is your French? Can you give us your best phrase? 
My French isn’t great but I can just about order a bottle of red wine. 

Stream and watch live on Channel 4 all day, every day from Wednesday 28th August to Sunday 8th September