Matthew Jackson, Project Officer at Disability Sports Coach, answered an SOS to ensure one team didn’t miss out on a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
‘I am an ex-professional track cycling coach – a sport I also compete in as a sprinter and on a tandem bike with my partially sighted wife, Lucy.
‘I saw on social media that the Kenyan tandem team had to borrow a training tandem for their race on Friday. When we found out that they had another race on Sunday, my wife and I decided to lend them our (much faster) racing tandem.
‘I got in touch with a contact, Franck Durivaux (the Canadian Sprint coach) who I had helped out with some equipment at an event last year. Franck kindly put me in touch with the Kenyan team.
‘Soon, Sunday morning was spent cramming stuff into my car and dashing to the track. I then headed to another track at Brixton Super Madison, South London, where I had an individual sprint competition. Sunday evening was spent retrieving the tandem from the grateful Kenyan team and getting everything back home and into the garage again!
‘Amazingly, the Kenyans rode a massive national record in what was their first ever sprint qualifier on an indoor track.’
‘While it was not quite how I imagined, it felt great to play a small part in the games and help others to take part in this special event. It’s what it’s all about.’
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