Mum’s the word for Olympic bid
LAURA Kenny doesn’t need to look far for her Olympic inspiration – her toddler Albie is the only motivation she needs.
Cathy Freeman famously spoke about dreaming of winning Olympic gold and then seeing her motivation evaporate the moment she achieved her dream.
Four golds and counting, this certainly does not apply to Kenny, already Britain’s most successful female Olympian.
And while six-time Olympic champion Allyson Felix has spoken of her new perspective since returning to athletics following the birth of her first child, Kenny’s fire only burns brighter with Tokyo in sight.
“This time round I’m probably even more motivated,” said Kenny, who is married to Bolton’s Jason Kenny and now lives in Cheshire.
“It will be the first time Albie has been in a velodrome and I want him to be able to see that if you put the hard work in, it pays off.
“I wouldn’t be going out for threehour rides in the chucking rain if I didn’t really want this badly.
“In London, I was only 20 and I never expected to even get to the Games, never mind win two golds. Then in Rio I wanted to prove I wasn’t a one-hit wonder – not just to the outside world but to myself as well.
“The fact I’ve done it twice before doesn’t really matter. I want to prove to people I can do it again, and I also want to prove you can do it with a child.
“Albie brings a whole different aspect to it – it’s a little bit more chaotic than it was before, but in a good way I think.
“I get back from camp and I’m thrown straight into being a mum again, and it just makes me feel so much more relaxed.”
Kenny has grown up before our eyes, winning two golds at London 2012 before being pictured swigging beer and laughing with Prince Harry and David Beckham alongside then new boyfriend, now husband, Jason. Promptly dubbed the Posh and Becks of cycling, between them they’ve won ten Olympic gold medals – meaning the Kenny household is just ahead of Estonia, Slovakia and Thailand on the all-time medal table, with Belarus in their sights.
However, all the growing up is now being done by the toddler nipping at her heels.
“The Olympics is going to be our longest time away from him,” added Kenny, among the Team GB athletes being supported by Purplebricks.
“I’ve done a week because I obviously go away on training camps, but Jason’s always been at home.
“It’s one of those things which we’re just not going to think about because I don’t want to get stressed or worried. A lot of people have said ‘why don’t we try him with a night away now?,’ but that puts the fear of god into me.
“If I think he’s not settled, how on earth am I going to leave him for two-and-a-half weeks?”
● Laura Kenny will appear in new TV adverts from Purplebricks, The Official Estate Agent of Team GB. Visit @PurplebricksUK on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
BABY BOY AN INSPIRATION AS KENNY EYES TOKYO