Hockey’s golden girl never gave up on Olympic dream
After years of disappointment and injury, SAM QUEK explains how she overcame her demons to triumph in Rio
THERE can be few feelings on earth like winning an Olympic gold medal so it’s no surprise that hockey player Sam Quek is determined to relive that moment again and again.
She says she could barely watch as, during the dramatic penalty shoot-out in the final against the Netherlands, her teammate Hollie Webb stepped up to take a shot.
It was the penalty that would secure them the coveted Olympic gold medal. “As I watched the ball fly into the back of the net, all I can remember is sprinting towards all the girls. It was the fastest I’ve ever run. It was pure elation and I burst into tears and then went into shock,” says Sam.
It was an especially sweet moment for the Wirral-born defender because it was one she thought she would never experience.
For Sam the road to Rio had been filled with injury and bitter disappointment at not being selected for either the 2008 or the 2012 Olympic Games.
When the team won bronze in front of a home crowd during London 2012, Sam was watching from the sidelines, having not even been selected as a reserve.
“Finding out I hadn’t been picked was a terrible moment but I went to every single one of the games,” says Sam, 27, who lives with her boyfriend of three years Tom Mairs, who works in student housing.
“I vividly remember crying when the team won the bronze medal. I was so proud of them but at the end of the day I wasn’t there on the pitch with a medal. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to deal with and I swore to myself there and then that I would never be in that position again.”
SAM first picked up a hockey stick at the age of 10. With a natural flair for hockey and football, she spent her childhood being driven to matches by her supportive parents Marilyn and Albert.
“I spent a lot of time in the car with mum and dad. On Saturdays I’d play a football match in the morning and a hockey match in the afternoon. But it got to the point where I had to pick and I chose hockey.”
In November 2008, aged 18, Sam had her first GB cap in a Test match against Argentina.
“Hockey is huge in Argentina and I remember walking into the stadium, which held 7,000 people. I hadn’t even played in front of 100 people before so it was a moment I’ll never forget,” says Sam, who now plays club hockey for Holcombe Hockey Club in Rochester.
Having just enrolled at Leeds Metropolitan University to study sports and exercise science, Sam had to balance her budding international hockey career with studying and a social life. “I’d arrive back from training at 11pm and meet my housemates for a quick boogie in a nightclub before heading to bed,” she says.
Despite her commitment and determination, Sam was left heartbroken when she didn’t make the squad for the Beijing or London Olympics.
On reflection she says it was a mixture of nerves and her stubborn determination to play how she thought she should play, rather than how the coaches wanted her to play, that cost her a place. After vowing she’d never sit on the sidelines again, Sam swallowed her pride and worked hard to become the player her team needed her to be.
It paid off and she captained the squad that competed in the 2014 Champions Trophy in Argentina, playing against the other top teams in the world.
“To date that is my biggest achievement after winning gold in Rio,” she says. But disaster struck in the opening match of the tournament. Following a clash with an Australian player, Sam broke two ribs and in the months that followed she struggled to regain her fitness.
“The Olympic qualifiers for Rio were only six months away and I’d gone from being captain to the bottom-ranked defender.
“When I still hadn’t made the squad by May, all the memories of 2012 started flooding back and I almost gave up.”
It was a few frank words from boyfriend Tom that kept her Olympic dream alive. “He has always been supportive but one night he sat me down and said, ‘Everything that you are moaning about is within your control’. He was very blunt and told me to stop complaining and start training.”
That June while the rest of the team went to the Olympic qualifiers, Tom took Sam on holiday to Croatia as a distraction.
“While Tom sipped beers in the sun, I hit the gym every day.
“My strength and conditioning coach set me a two-week programme, which was a combination of cardio and strength training.
“I got fit, strong and overhauled my mindset. By the time the team returned I was the fittest one in the squad and played my best hockey. I was selected for the European Championships in the summer of 2015 and have held my position ever since.”
Once in Rio, Sam knew Team GB had every chance of winning gold although the Netherlands were still clear favourites.
But the team’s determination paid off and after a nail-biting final they won gold as the UK cheered along at home.
Adapting to life in the spotlight is something Sam has had to adjust to quickly.
“Before we flew home we were warned the UK had gone hockey mad. As soon as we landed at Heathrow we were thrust into the thick of it. Since then my life has changed completely.”
She has recently experienced the downside of celebrity after becoming a victim of Russian hackers leaking athletes’ private medical records.
HER records showed she had been granted a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) to take an inhaler to treat her asthma.
“I got a notification on Twitter and the headline read, ‘Golden hockey girls take banned substances’. People will see that headline but might not read the whole story. I was very frustrated and wanted to stand up and not be tarnished with this brush. TUEs are completely legitimate. As athletes we do everything to the best of our ability, including keeping clean.”
Sam, who hasn’t picked up a hockey stick since winning gold in August, is taking a break from the sport. “I’m having six months off to recuperate, mentally and physically. One of the reasons for my break is to have a bit of stability in my home life. Hopefully in the near future there might be some wedding bells.
“I’ve definitely got another Olympic cycle in me but if I do decide to do another one that would be my last. I’ve been doing it for 10 years now and winning gold is my dream come true.”