Silver lining for Tully in Tokyo
TULLY KEARNEY finally got to cry happy tears five years after she was told to give up on her Paralympic dream.
The Nottingham-born 24-year-old seemed on course for a glorious gold in the 200m S5 freestyle in Tokyo yesterday but ran out of steam in the last 25 metres, beaten to the wall by China’s Li Zhang.
But she still won silver to erase some of the painful memories of the 2016 Paralympics.
Kearney was expected to be one of the stars of Rio but was forced to withdraw two weeks before she was due to fly.
Her condition, dystonia syndrome, progressed to the extent she was told her career was over and only her mum could convince her to return to the pool.
The seven-time world champion even had to learn how to swim again and says her medal is a reward for proving all the doubters wrong.
“It means a lot to me because it shows other people with dystonia and all disabilities you don’t have to give up,” said Kearney, who is able to train full-time and benefit from world class facilities, technology, coaching and support teams thanks to National Lottery funding.
“You can achieve what you want to achieve, you just have to adapt and it might take longer.
“There were many times when I almost gave up. When I started to withdraw, there were many times when I was told I wouldn’t swim again and it took me so long to get back into the pool.
“I thought it would be better not to swim than learn I couldn’t. But my mum pushed me, because she knew I would find a way.
“If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t be here.”
Kearney also had to contend with a shoulder injury on the eve of the Games and admits her place on the starting blocks was hanging in the balance two weeks ago.
You wouldn’t have known from the way she attacked the first half and had this just been a 100m race, Kearney would have broken the world record.
That speed bodes well for Thursday’s 100m event but she was made to pay in the second half here, as she let a 2.19s advantage into the last 50m slip and Zhang nipped in to take gold.
“I know I broke the world record for the 100m freestyle in that 200, I know I just went out too quickly,” she said.
“But a couple of weeks ago I didn’t know if I was going to be fit enough to race, so to come here and post a PB and get a medal is crazy. I have been dealing with a shoulder injury and it has been on and off for a while.
“It has been my goal for 10 years to make it and so to be able to say I am a Paralympian is my top aim for the Games. I am not thinking about medals, just to get here is all I wanted to do.”
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