Confident Cockroft prepares for tilt at second gold in Christchurch

HANNAH Cockroft admitted her first outing at the IPC World Athletics Championships was easy as she claimed gold – but has vowed to take nothing for granted to get another.
By The Newsroom
Published 24th Jan 2011, 08:27 BST
Updated 24th Jan 2011, 08:27 BST

Cockroft was untouchable on the opening morning at Christchurch's Queen Elizabeth II Park claiming gold in the T34 200m final with almost a

10-second cushion over the rest of the field.

The 18-year-old clocked 33.72secs to leave Japan's Haruka Kitaura and America's Kristen Messer, silver and bronze medallists respectively, comfortably trailing in her wake.

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Cockroft – from Halifax – will bid to repeat the trick in the T34 100m final and as the world record holder will be favourite again but she insists she will guard against complacency.

"I hope I am ahead in the 100m like I was in the 200m, I have the world record so really I should be safe in that on as well," said Cockroft, who holds the T34 200m world record of 33.47secs and 100m equivalent of 18.68.

"But going into a race with girls who have never raced before or rarely raced and with everyone telling me I have so many world records I have to keep my head.

"I think 'what if one of them is really fast?' but now I have raced against them I have an idea of what to expect and I am confident.

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"I know I should have won the 200m easily, which I did, but I saw the Japanese girl before the race and was like 'oh my word' she looks fast.

"But I got a good start, which I have been working on and I was happy with it. I don't think it has really hit me yet that I won by such a distance.

"When I got up in the morning I was like 'I can't believe I am competing' and I was warming up and I wasn't getting nervous."

Aviva GB&NI star Cockroft will not have to wait long to return to the track at Queen Elizabeth II Park with the T34 100m final penned in for today.

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And Cockroft admits there is little she can do to prepare for her second shot at a gold medal apart from rest and relax.

"I will just make sure I eat well and make sure I get enough rest," she added. "I don't think there is anymore I can do. I just need to get a good warm up in and go out there and do exactly the same.

"I think I wasn't nervous for the 200m because I had seen the girls I was coming up against in training and I thought I looked better than them."

Aviva has been supporting British athletes since 1999. To find out more about Aviva's athletics sponsorship, go to aviva.co.uk/athletics

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