Maisie Summers-Newton says she had to overcome “a lot of self doubt” on making her return to the Paralympic pool in Paris. Watching on you would not have known it, however, as the 22-year-old destroyed the field to retain her Paralympic title in the women’s SM6 200m individual medley on Friday night.
A breakout British star of the Tokyo Games, where she won two golds and set a Paralympic record in the IM (she went on to set the world record this year), Summers-Newton has felt the weight of expectation and the eyes of the crowd here. Nerves had left her “pooing her pants” she said, but after racing neck and neck with the American Ellie Marks for 100m, an imperious breaststroke section took her clear and she finished in a time of 2min 56.9sec, some 5.6sec clear of her rival.
“I was really, really nervous,” Summers-Newton said after the race. “I have a lot of self-doubt, no matter how hard I train in the pool, how well I swim throughout the rest of the season. I think that’s something that’s come since Tokyo. There’s a lot of pressure being Paralympic champion and then trying to defend your title. It’s been a lot, but I’m just trying to enjoy it and remind myself that I’ve been at the top since 2018. It’s a long time. I’m obviously doing things right.
“I think when you come to a Paralympic Games, you want to get the medal more than anything. So that was my main goal tonight. But the girls out there are obviously really fast as well. And you just never know. And I just put so much pressure on myself. So yeah, I was super nervous. But I think the nerves for me obviously work in some situations.”
On Sunday Summers-Newton will look to retain her second title, in the 100m breaststroke, and said she took confidence from knowing that the third leg of the medley was her specialist stroke. “A lot of confidence,” she said. “For me, it’s about how far ahead the girls are going to be on butterfly and backstroke, and trying to swim my own race [during those legs] because I can’t swim fly as fast as some of them. But the breaststroke, I know I can just try to catch up as much as possible. And then on that front crawl leg, give it everything.”
In the three years since Tokyo, Summers-Newton has not only adjusted to life as a champion, she has completed her teacher training. “These three years have been fantastic. I finished university. I’m a qualified primary school teacher now, I’ve met so many different friends and I think, on the team-wise, I’ve become a more senior member of the group,” she said. “Swimming comes naturally for me. Writing assignments, going into schools and teaching for eight weeks, that was tough. But I’ve made incredible memories there. And I think it’s allowed me to have that side of me where I don’t have to think about swimming 24-7. I can think about my teaching instead.”
Earlier in the evening Tully Kearney sealed her second gold of the Games as she won the S5 100m freestyle. Kearney battled with the Ukrainian Iryna Poida in the first 50m before powering away at the turn to win by a margin of six seconds over one of her keenest rivals.
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In another atmospheric night with a full crowd at La Défense Arena, Kearney said she too had struggled with self-generated pressure of expectation. “In a way it was easier to race today [because of winning gold yesterday], but I found it more difficult because of the pressure of wanting to retain my title,” she said. “The last 24 hours have taught me that I need to stop pressuring myself at races”.
“I think technically I know what I need to do. Hopefully my coach will say the same thing when I speak to him later,” she said, acknowledging that her kick at the turn was crucial. “Turn and breathe out, don’t breathe too much, try to conserve energy and not look around. It’s so tempting when you know that they’re just there, but obviously that slows you down.”
