HANNAH COCKROFT: WE MUST NOT BE FORGOTTEN

HANNAH COCKROFT has laid bare the damage done to para-athletics over the past 12 months, claiming athletes are leaving the sport behind after a year of inactivity.

The five-time Paralympic wheelchair racing champion says she knows of disabled athletes who will not return after an extended break due to the pandemic.

Cockroft has been able to continue to train ahead of this year’s Paralympics, although it is a 200-mile round-trip from her Chester home to the Loughborough high-performance centre.

She fears disabled people may miss out in the return to sport as a vaccine kicks in and leisure centres, gyms and sports facilities begin to reopen.

‘I hope disability sport won’t be left out on a limb but I don’t think it has been considered at all,’ the 28year-old told Metro.

‘All we hear about is, “Everyone can work out at home” but what if you can’t? What if you struggle to even get out of bed without help? A lot of disabled people are shielding and haven’t had a date for their vaccine.

‘There are so many factors not considered. The government has said disability sports groups can continue but facilities are closed. It’s a minefield. Even if things do open up, disabled people can’t just get up and go.’

Disability sport could potentially have been set back years by a year of inactivity and Cockroft regularly sees the damage that has been done across the UK.

‘I would say Covid has put disabled people off if anything. We began to see it when meets resumed last year – entry numbers are down and that’s upsetting,’ she said. ‘People are thinking “what’s the point?”. I know athletes who have been on a “break” for a year and not showing any signs of coming back. I know people, disabled people and disabled athletes, who haven’t really gone out for almost a year. I couldn’t do that. People are losing their independence and starting to get cocooned in their houses.’ Cockroft and wheelchair racer boyfriend Nathan Maguire train a group of amateur athletes but that has also fallen foul of Covid regulations. ‘The last session we did was before Christmas. Before that, it was September,’ Cockroft added. ‘These kids have no access to anything at the moment. Even though Nathan and I are elite athletes we can’t get them onto that track. And we can’t just run round the park or break in to use the track somewhere else, as some have suggested I should.’