After recovering from a head injury that disrupted his 2019, Jon Gildea looks to be back to his best heading into a Paralympic year – now it’s just a matter of getting there.
The C5 para-cyclist failed to make the cut for the ten-strong team for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games but has since gone from strength to strength on the bike, including winning two gold medals in the 2017 Para-Cycling World Championships in Los Angeles.
The 41-year-old will look to claim his crown back later this month as the Championships head to Ontario, where he hopes to put himself in contention for a seat on the plane to Tokyo 2020.
And the Sale-born athlete believes the setback of missing out on the chance to compete in Brazil has only spurred him on to try even harder.
“I had to have a good look at myself after not getting selected for the Games in Rio because I was convinced I had a better performance in me,” the Paralympic hopeful said.
“I had a big winter and went to the World Championships to try and deliver that performance that I thought I was capable of and I did.
“This time I’m clearly better than I have ever been, and the hope is to go and deliver that performance that I know I can do.
“So far in the build up to the 2020 World Championships everything seems to be lining up perfectly. I would love to be able to put the world champion’s jersey back on and put myself in the driving seat to go and win a gold medal in Tokyo.”
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