Hannah Mills has controlled the ship since she was 14 years old. It was 2002, and the young Tessa Joel, then Britain’s Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, told that she would win the gold medal in sailing if London won the Olympics in 2012.
Not only did she keep her promise as a teenager, but she became the most important sailor in Games history after appearing on the podium three times in a row, taking gold in the women’s 470 class alongside Elade McIntyre on Wednesday.
“It’s been one of the hardest weeks of my life. I’m sure for Elade too, every day without being able to eat, just the nerves building up, the excitement to do it. It’s over. We’ve done what we came here to do and it’s over,” Mills said. is amazing.
The British ship finished fifth in the medal race at Enoshima Yacht Harbor, enough to win the overall, and thus gold, with 38 points, but the celebrations were delayed after a protest from France.
The French claimed that the British world champions raced for the Polish boat Agnieszka Skripulc and Jolanta Ugar, who eventually took silver with 54 points. France’s Camille Lecointre and Alois Retina took the bronze with the same score, but their protest was dismissed after being heard on the ground.
Mills and McIntyre dominated the race at Enoshima Harbor, winning two races and finishing only twice outside the top four. Heading into the medal race by 14 points, duo Team GB required finishing the top seven to secure the Olympic gold.
Mills has now won three Olympic medals, hosting silver at London 2012 and gold at Rio 2016, while McIntry has followed in the footsteps of his father, Mike, who won gold at the 1988 Seoul Games.
“Becoming the most successful boatman is crazy,” said Mills, who is now 33. “Growing up as a girl, it was something I had in mind and wanted to do: first win a gold medal and then win more.” Medals, she became the most successful female Olympian in Wales, a satellite country of the United Kingdom, and the first Welsh woman to win three medals in successive games.
But historic Welsh sailing is much more than just a sport. On the Olympics bound for Tokyo, Mills was able to focus on other projects. She created the “Great Plastics Pledge”, which aims to eliminate single-use plastics in sport, and is an ambassador for the European Climate Agreement.
Mills is also a pioneer, being the first of six British women to train with four-time Olympic gold medalist Sir Ben Ainsley’s SailGP as part of the New Women’s Development Program – an initiative to accelerate the inclusion of female athletes in the event, with a full-time position at His team is at stake.
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