Blindfold won’t stop me from chasing my dream, insists Clegg
LIBBY CLEGG’S prerace check list had stood mostly unchanged for the past decade since the visuallyimpaired sprinter first ventured on to the track and trained what was left of her sight on Paralympic glory.
Uniform. Running spikes. An energy drink, possibly a snack. But as she prepares to chase a medal at a third successive Games this week in Rio, the 26-year-old now has something else added to her check-list that, to many, will seem like an exercise in overkill.
For the first time in global competition, Clegg will take her marks with a blindfold as this season’s musthave accessory.
It has been prescribed, the Scot outlines, due to a recent reclassification by the sport’s custodians owing to a further deterioration in her vision, the consequence of a condition called Stargardt’s macular dystrophy which she has had since birth.
‘My eye condition is degenerative and it has got worse over the past year,’ the twice-silver medallist reveals. ‘My coach and a few of my friends noticed something was up.
‘So I went through the national classification to see if it had changed, knowing that if I dropped to T11, I’d have to run with a blindfold. That’s quite a daunting experience in itself because I’ve always used my eyes to the best of my ability. But, in reality, I’m running better with the blindfold.’
In practice, Clegg can no longer see more than 20 centimetres ahead. ‘And that’s only in my left eye. My right eye pretty much has nothing.’ Yet, she has long been used to carrying on regardless, her schooling in Edinburgh taught her to brush aside nature’s inconveniences and walk tall regardless.
It is an attitude that came into its own last summer when Clegg was set perhaps her most competitive challenge yet. Shortly after winning Scotland’s only athletics gold at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, the former world champion found herself on the fringes, as first illness then injury left her sidelined.
Fighting for fitness, she travelled to the IPC world championships in Doha but withdrew after a single outing with her ankle unwilling to bend to her whims. The repercussions were painful. Not only did it lead to a split with her long-time guide runner Mikhail Huggins, but it also brought the loss of her Lottery funding.
If not for the faith placed in Clegg by her sponsors, it could have been the end of the road. ‘Mentally, it was very difficult,’ she admits. ‘I had an injury just when I lost all my support services so I had to find people to work with. That meant I had difficult decisions to take.’
From fearing she would miss out in Rio to checking into the Village today as favourite, it remains a process she would rather have done without.
‘Being here is a huge relief and a step in the right direction,’ Clegg confirms.
‘But I think some of it has been really good for me. I’ve been able to make my own decisions. It’s been a lot easier to do certain things and work with different people to make sure I’ve got the best support team around me. That’s gone really well.
‘So I’m really happy and that’s the most important thing.’