0:00:01 > 0:00:05MUSIC: "Keep On Movin'" by Soul II Soul
0:00:05 > 0:00:09These are the streets of Stratford in the London Borough of Newham
0:00:09 > 0:00:13and just behind those houses there, about a mile away,
0:00:13 > 0:00:18is the Olympic Stadium. Now, on this very ordinary set of streets
0:00:18 > 0:00:24arguably our most successful female athlete ever was born and bred.
0:00:24 > 0:00:27But you'd be forgiven if you got the name wrong.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31Because it's not Kelly Holmes or Jessica Ennis or Paula Radcliffe
0:00:31 > 0:00:32or Denise Lewis.
0:00:32 > 0:00:36It's this woman - Christine Ohuruogu.
0:00:36 > 0:00:38- COMMENTATOR:- Christine Ohuruogu will start to run her down
0:00:38 > 0:00:40and is coming fast.
0:00:40 > 0:00:42Christine Ohuruogu is perhaps going to get there!
0:00:42 > 0:00:44Christine Ohuruogu wins the gold!
0:00:44 > 0:00:48She was shortlisted for BBC Sports Personality of the Year,
0:00:48 > 0:00:49one of only two women,
0:00:49 > 0:00:53and is Sunday Times and Sky Sportswoman of the Year.
0:00:54 > 0:00:58And no wonder. She's won more world outdoor titles
0:00:58 > 0:01:00than any other female British athlete.
0:01:00 > 0:01:05Two World Championships, an Olympic gold and a Commonwealth gold.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08- COMMENTATOR:- Gold for England. What a run!
0:01:08 > 0:01:11And it was here in the stadium behind me on 5th August last year
0:01:11 > 0:01:13during the London Olympics
0:01:13 > 0:01:17that Christine ran one of her most memorable races.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20She won silver in the 400 metres.
0:01:20 > 0:01:22Yes, she'd have liked gold, but, hey, it was in her back yard
0:01:22 > 0:01:26so it was still special.
0:01:26 > 0:01:27- COMMENTATOR:- She's got it!
0:01:27 > 0:01:31She'll eventually run faster, and already she is, arguably,
0:01:31 > 0:01:36the most successful female athlete we've ever had in Great Britain.
0:01:36 > 0:01:40Yet Christine's path to glory has been far from smooth.
0:01:40 > 0:01:44In 2006, she was banned from competing for a year
0:01:44 > 0:01:47for missing three drugs tests.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50It doesn't matter whether it was an innocent missed drugs...
0:01:50 > 0:01:54I think once you've got the word "drugs" it's completely over
0:01:54 > 0:01:57and I thought this is going to follow me for the rest of my life,
0:01:57 > 0:01:59rest of my career.
0:01:59 > 0:02:03She was pilloried by the press, plagued by injury,
0:02:03 > 0:02:08even disqualified for a false start in a World Championship.
0:02:08 > 0:02:10But every time she suffers a setback,
0:02:10 > 0:02:15she draws strength from her family and faith and returns to the track.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17Thank God I just come over the other side.
0:02:17 > 0:02:22To God be the glory and everything. It's just that that got me through.
0:02:22 > 0:02:25- COMMENTATOR:- Christine Ohuruogu takes the win!
0:02:25 > 0:02:26What I love about Christine
0:02:26 > 0:02:29and admire is that she will come back and bounce back
0:02:29 > 0:02:33from all this negativity and she will just deliver on the track.
0:02:34 > 0:02:39And this is the very track where an Olympic champion was born.
0:02:39 > 0:02:42She put hours and hours into her work here.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46She has a very strong work ethic, no matter what the weather,
0:02:46 > 0:02:47no matter what time of day,
0:02:47 > 0:02:50she was here perfecting her runs with her coach.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54Christine lets her running do the talking,
0:02:54 > 0:02:56shunning the celebrity circuit
0:02:56 > 0:03:00in favour of visiting local schools to talk to budding athletes.
0:03:00 > 0:03:03The one thing I really want to tell you is go out there and dream big.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06Really go out and set your standards high.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08And it's no wonder she wants to inspire the young.
0:03:08 > 0:03:13She has six younger brothers and sisters in her tightknit family.
0:03:13 > 0:03:16We don't know very much about Christine Ohuruogu
0:03:16 > 0:03:18and there's certainly plenty I don't know about her
0:03:18 > 0:03:22so she's agreed to meet me here so I can find out exactly
0:03:22 > 0:03:26what makes one of our greatest female athletes tick.
0:03:36 > 0:03:38Christine, I am so thrilled to meet you.
0:03:38 > 0:03:42I have had training in how to say Ohuruogu. Is that correct?
0:03:42 > 0:03:43That's spot on.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46You must have heard so many different ways of pronouncing...
0:03:46 > 0:03:49I have, I have. I remember when I was in primary school
0:03:49 > 0:03:52and I never wanted to get up to get a certificate because I knew
0:03:52 > 0:03:55that my teachers would always get my name wrong and then a similar
0:03:55 > 0:03:59thing happened in secondary school and I think, um, the realisation
0:03:59 > 0:04:01hit me in about year seven or eight
0:04:01 > 0:04:04that no-one's ever going to get it right.
0:04:04 > 0:04:09- But now, we are getting it right. At last!- Yeah.
0:04:09 > 0:04:12And in Nigerian it translates as "Fighter"?
0:04:12 > 0:04:14Yeah, something like that.
0:04:14 > 0:04:18I think it's, um, I don't know the exact meaning but, I think
0:04:18 > 0:04:21that's the easiest way of packaging the name.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24Mmm, it's a good name for you.
0:04:24 > 0:04:29'Christine Ijeoma Ohuruogu was born in 1984 to Nigerian immigrants
0:04:29 > 0:04:32'who came to the UK four years earlier.'
0:04:33 > 0:04:35Raised in Newham, East London,
0:04:35 > 0:04:38she's the second eldest of eight children.
0:04:38 > 0:04:39And from an early age,
0:04:39 > 0:04:43it was made clear to Christine where success comes from.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46My dad always taught us to, you know, work hard.
0:04:46 > 0:04:49That was always his mantra, you know, work hard, work hard.
0:04:49 > 0:04:53He'd always check our results at school
0:04:53 > 0:04:55and if we weren't in the top half,
0:04:55 > 0:04:58preferably top two of the class is what he wanted...
0:04:58 > 0:05:01If we came home with a mark it's always,
0:05:01 > 0:05:03"Well, what did your friends get?"
0:05:03 > 0:05:06And, "Where did your friends finish?"
0:05:06 > 0:05:09And, "You should always aim to finish top of the class all the time."
0:05:09 > 0:05:12- I think that's how he was raised. - Yeah.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15So it was always imprinted on us that we had to work hard
0:05:15 > 0:05:18and have to be successful.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22There might have been a strong culture of achievement
0:05:22 > 0:05:25in Christine's family but the Ohuruogu household was,
0:05:25 > 0:05:28and still is, very close.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33Yeah, I think her family is probably one of the most important things.
0:05:33 > 0:05:37We're very, very, very close which is a really good thing.
0:05:37 > 0:05:42We can all talk. We can call each other up any time. We meet up a lot.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45We always speak on the phone when either of us is away.
0:05:45 > 0:05:47We're always in contact.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51The kids love her to bits, the younger siblings, which is good.
0:05:52 > 0:05:56Perri Shakes-Drayton, fellow athlete, 400 metre hurdler
0:05:56 > 0:06:00and an East Londoner like Christine, is a close friend.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03Christine's world is her family, you know, she has a load of brothers
0:06:03 > 0:06:07and sisters and it's nice, you know that, they're the people
0:06:07 > 0:06:10who's been around her through ups and downs and stuff and they're
0:06:10 > 0:06:14the people that keep you grounded, keep you on your toes.
0:06:14 > 0:06:18When you try and get above yourself, your family will tell it how it is.
0:06:18 > 0:06:22And alongside her family and community is something which is
0:06:22 > 0:06:25very much part of the weekly routine for the Ohuruogus.
0:06:26 > 0:06:31Church. Even if it can be chaotic getting there!
0:06:31 > 0:06:36It was quite difficult getting us all together
0:06:36 > 0:06:38but we always went on Sundays.
0:06:38 > 0:06:42Always late, even though it was only down the road.
0:06:42 > 0:06:48- And what was church like at that time?- It is very old, very grand.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51I think we were all kind of baptised in that church
0:06:51 > 0:06:53so we've all grown up through the church.
0:06:53 > 0:06:55That's the first church we started going to as a family
0:06:55 > 0:06:57and it's still the same church we all go to now.
0:06:57 > 0:07:01Did you enjoy it when you were little or was a bit of a chore?
0:07:01 > 0:07:06No, I think Sundays were always a lot different then than they are now.
0:07:06 > 0:07:08I think Sundays were a lot more family oriented.
0:07:08 > 0:07:12That was nice to just have the family around and we'd have friends round
0:07:12 > 0:07:17or we'd go and visit my parents' friends so that was really nice.
0:07:17 > 0:07:23And when did religion really, or your faith, really take root in you?
0:07:23 > 0:07:28Um, well I went to a Church of England secondary school
0:07:28 > 0:07:33and I think that was nice that they brought us up
0:07:33 > 0:07:37in the way of Christianity but I think you'd always see that
0:07:37 > 0:07:40everybody goes to church on Sundays
0:07:40 > 0:07:43but they just carry on as normal during the week.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47One of my really good friends was there, her dad was a vicar,
0:07:47 > 0:07:50so that was quite nice to just to watch and observe how
0:07:50 > 0:07:53she carried herself and what faith meant to her growing up
0:07:53 > 0:07:57- and to decide whether I wanted to go down that route or not.- Yeah.
0:07:57 > 0:07:59It was something that I thought I really wanted to,
0:07:59 > 0:08:01again that word, work at.
0:08:01 > 0:08:06O Lord, open thou our lips. Our mouth shall shew forth thy praise.
0:08:06 > 0:08:12Reverend Stennett Kirby is the Ohuruogu family's parish priest.
0:08:12 > 0:08:14Their faith is very strong.
0:08:14 > 0:08:19Christine herself has a very quiet faith.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21She is very, very modest.
0:08:21 > 0:08:27Christine sees her faith as confirming the strength she has
0:08:27 > 0:08:30received through the Holy spirit.
0:08:30 > 0:08:34From an early age, Christine was driven academically,
0:08:34 > 0:08:38bagging herself a hat full of GCSEs and A levels
0:08:38 > 0:08:42and a degree in Linguistics from University College, London.
0:08:42 > 0:08:47But her sporting passion was not athletics. It was netball.
0:08:47 > 0:08:51Your first sport that you were brilliant at was netball?
0:08:51 > 0:08:54- Yeah, yeah.- So that started at school, presumably?- Primary school.
0:08:54 > 0:08:58And you represented the UK in the Junior European Championships?
0:08:58 > 0:09:03Well, for netball, I played for England Under 17 and Under 19.
0:09:03 > 0:09:09And then I think the year after that, I switched to running.
0:09:09 > 0:09:11How did that happen?
0:09:11 > 0:09:13That was just a happenstance sports day, really, wasn't it?
0:09:13 > 0:09:16Yeah, well, the thing is, me and my brother always ran at school.
0:09:16 > 0:09:19We always knew from primary school that we were quite fast,
0:09:19 > 0:09:21but every kid thinks they're fast.
0:09:21 > 0:09:24I didn't think I was faster than the others.
0:09:24 > 0:09:26I just knew that I was fast.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29And in sports days, in primary school, I generally would win,
0:09:29 > 0:09:32but there was another girl that would beat me sometimes
0:09:32 > 0:09:34so every year it was this big thing like,
0:09:34 > 0:09:37"Is Christine going to win or is this other girl going to win?"
0:09:37 > 0:09:40- What's happened to her? - She didn't go into athletics.
0:09:40 > 0:09:44I think life got in the way, as it does.
0:09:44 > 0:09:48So that's how I started running so I went to secondary school
0:09:48 > 0:09:51loving netball and not really thinking much about track
0:09:51 > 0:09:55because, for me, track didn't exist.
0:09:55 > 0:10:00She was good, she was strong, she could run fast, she could jump high.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03Her ball skills were not quite as good as her physical skills
0:10:03 > 0:10:06but that's something that could have been developed.
0:10:06 > 0:10:11She had all the attributes of athleticism that's needed
0:10:11 > 0:10:15for a sport that has a high demand on physicality.
0:10:15 > 0:10:19Everybody seems to think that netball is a soft girl's game.
0:10:19 > 0:10:21I'm sorry, it's not.
0:10:21 > 0:10:25It's a bit like rugby but toned down.
0:10:29 > 0:10:33As a teenager in the '90s, Christine had church, her friends,
0:10:33 > 0:10:35her studies and netball.
0:10:36 > 0:10:39But realising that she could also run fast,
0:10:39 > 0:10:41she kept returning to the track.
0:10:41 > 0:10:46Lloyd Cowan, Christine's coach for all of her international career,
0:10:46 > 0:10:49noticed something special when he started timing her.
0:10:49 > 0:10:54Turned up at this track here one Tuesday.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58I can remember it was a Tuesday, and said, "Look, I play netball
0:10:58 > 0:11:02"and I just want to use track and field to get fit for netball."
0:11:02 > 0:11:06Wasn't going to be a problem because I had a big group and she can fit in.
0:11:06 > 0:11:11I had other athletes who were international so she came once a week
0:11:11 > 0:11:14and just did a session, then disappeared
0:11:14 > 0:11:18and after about seven weeks she turned up and we were doing a session
0:11:18 > 0:11:21and she was hanging in with the boys and I'm thinking,
0:11:21 > 0:11:24"Nah, that's not right, Kev."
0:11:24 > 0:11:27I said, "Get the clock on her, what she's running,"
0:11:27 > 0:11:29and I'm thinking, "Ooh!"
0:11:29 > 0:11:33Even without trying, Christine's running ability was starting
0:11:33 > 0:11:36to be noticed and she was selected in 2001
0:11:36 > 0:11:41to run the 400m in the Under 20 Great Britain squad against France.
0:11:42 > 0:11:44She came third.
0:11:44 > 0:11:49Then she was picked for the European Junior Championships.
0:11:49 > 0:11:51I came home with a bronze medal.
0:11:51 > 0:11:56Yeah, and that was a medal that I probably wasn't supposed to win
0:11:56 > 0:12:00because I managed to scrape through to the final by the skin of my teeth.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03Going into the race I was actually the slowest on the board.
0:12:03 > 0:12:06I had the slowest time. I remember my coach saying,
0:12:06 > 0:12:11"Listen, you've got a bronze medal of doing two days a week of training."
0:12:11 > 0:12:15He kind of pressured me to switch,
0:12:15 > 0:12:20not because track was better than netball, but it was because,
0:12:20 > 0:12:23look what you did off doing two days' worth of training
0:12:23 > 0:12:28and then I think he said, "If you want to get better in track
0:12:28 > 0:12:30"you have to make a decision because if you're going to keep taking
0:12:30 > 0:12:35"weekends out, you're not going to get the best of either."
0:12:35 > 0:12:38So I had to really sit down and decide where I was going to go
0:12:38 > 0:12:41and it was one of the hardest decisions ever to make
0:12:41 > 0:12:46because I would be quitting something, leaving something
0:12:46 > 0:12:47that I was very good at.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50I was very good at netball and I was going to get better.
0:12:50 > 0:12:53You still sound as if, "Did I do the right thing?"
0:12:53 > 0:12:55- But you did.- It was, it was.
0:12:55 > 0:12:59- And you chose 400 metres or it chose you?- I didn't choose four.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02- Nobody in their right mind chooses four.- Why?
0:13:02 > 0:13:06- What's so difficult about it? - I suppose it's the training.
0:13:06 > 0:13:07It is a painful event.
0:13:07 > 0:13:09Christine's event, the 400 metres,
0:13:09 > 0:13:15is a particularly difficult event tactically because in short sprints
0:13:15 > 0:13:18the athletes run almost as fast as they can.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21Up to 200 metres it's sprinting and flat out.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24In longer distances, they have other athletes to gauge their performance
0:13:24 > 0:13:28against and run on the shoulder of and come from behind etc.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31400 metres is THE race where you're on your own,
0:13:31 > 0:13:32you're in your own lane,
0:13:32 > 0:13:35and whatever you do in that lane is down to you.
0:13:37 > 0:13:42In 2004, after becoming the Amateur Athletics 400m champion,
0:13:42 > 0:13:45Christine was selected for the Athens Olympics.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48She was on a steep learning curve.
0:13:48 > 0:13:52It's been an amazing experience having all the excitement,
0:13:52 > 0:13:55also all the attention. I never expected anything like that.
0:13:56 > 0:13:59Christine reached the semifinals
0:13:59 > 0:14:03but she was outgunned and frustrated with her performance.
0:14:03 > 0:14:06- COMMENTATOR:- She'll be disappointed with that.
0:14:06 > 0:14:11This, combined with not winning any titles in 2005,
0:14:11 > 0:14:14forced her to make a promise to herself.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16It was an awful year
0:14:16 > 0:14:21and I remember coming out of the season of 2005 thinking
0:14:21 > 0:14:27that's the last time that I go to a Championship
0:14:27 > 0:14:30and not perform well.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32That's the last time it happens.
0:14:32 > 0:14:33She's very, very disciplined,
0:14:33 > 0:14:36and she's always been one of those people that, you know,
0:14:36 > 0:14:38once she sets her mind on something she always goes for it.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41Also I think she's a very resilient person as well.
0:14:41 > 0:14:45She does, you know, she's um, she, I think
0:14:45 > 0:14:48she takes after my dad in that respect, you know.
0:14:48 > 0:14:52Once she's off, once she has her mind set on something she'll just go
0:14:52 > 0:14:56for it which is reflected with her success so far.
0:14:57 > 0:15:01Determined to run faster and inspired by her faith,
0:15:01 > 0:15:03Christine started to train harder.
0:15:05 > 0:15:06A LOT harder.
0:15:06 > 0:15:10Getting up early on cold, winter mornings to do sprinting repetitions
0:15:10 > 0:15:13on the track and then sessions in the gym
0:15:13 > 0:15:16followed by more track later in the day.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20With Chrissie, she's one of the best trainers I've ever had.
0:15:20 > 0:15:25When it comes to training it's training, it's just training,
0:15:25 > 0:15:27trying to get better, trying to get fit.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30Everything is just about track and field.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33I always say, "Think about what your competitor is doing
0:15:33 > 0:15:34"so you have to train twice as hard.
0:15:34 > 0:15:38"I have no idea what they are doing but I sure know what you are doing."
0:15:38 > 0:15:43So she doubles it. It's a two, two-and-a-half hour training plan
0:15:43 > 0:15:46and in that two-and-a-half hours she'd be doing everything
0:15:46 > 0:15:48and then she'll go home and she'll eat and she'll rest
0:15:48 > 0:15:50and then we come back and we'll be running in the afternoon
0:15:50 > 0:15:52and the session is specific.
0:15:52 > 0:15:56She's a very task hard-driven female. Needs to know the numbers.
0:15:56 > 0:16:00If we're doing ten runs and one is a bad run,
0:16:00 > 0:16:03it ruins the whole session for her.
0:16:05 > 0:16:10The training paid off and in 2006, Christine was selected to run
0:16:10 > 0:16:12at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.
0:16:12 > 0:16:14- ANNOUNCER:- Welcome to the city of Melbourne!
0:16:14 > 0:16:17The clear favourite was Tonique Williams-Darling, who was the
0:16:17 > 0:16:22world champion in 2005 and Olympic champion the year before that.
0:16:22 > 0:16:25Few gave Christine a hope.
0:16:29 > 0:16:33At 100 metres from the finish they were head to head.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36But then Christine turned on the heat.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38- COMMENTATOR:- Christine Ohuruogu is taking on the Olympic
0:16:38 > 0:16:42and world champion and is coming away.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44Gold for England! What a run!
0:16:48 > 0:16:51She certainly wasn't the favourite and she came there,
0:16:51 > 0:16:55and was utterly impressive in winning the Commonwealth Games
0:16:55 > 0:16:58and I think arrived for the first time at an event
0:16:58 > 0:17:01like the Commonwealth Games, a major championship,
0:17:01 > 0:17:04and goes away taking home a gold medal.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07I mean, you might as well take home a gold medal from Australia,
0:17:07 > 0:17:10cos it's a long way to fly if you don't win a medal to think about.
0:17:10 > 0:17:14But Christine impressed me enormously then
0:17:14 > 0:17:16and she has done ever since.
0:17:20 > 0:17:25The Games of the 30th Olympiad in 2012
0:17:25 > 0:17:29are awarded to the city of London!
0:17:29 > 0:17:32CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:17:32 > 0:17:34After Christine's win in Melbourne,
0:17:34 > 0:17:37and with London starting to gear up for the Olympics in six years' time,
0:17:37 > 0:17:42there was talk of her becoming the face of London 2012.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50But during 2005 and 2006,
0:17:50 > 0:17:55Christine had mistakenly missed two compulsory drugs tests.
0:17:56 > 0:18:00Then she missed a third.
0:18:00 > 0:18:04The position was that she had not complied with
0:18:04 > 0:18:09one of the anti-doping rules which says you have to present yourself.
0:18:09 > 0:18:15You must not miss three occasions when people come to test you.
0:18:15 > 0:18:18Christine had made long-standing appointments to be visited
0:18:18 > 0:18:22by anti-doping inspectors but, at the last minute, changed her plans.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28When the inspectors turned up she wasn't there.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31That is a missed drugs test.
0:18:31 > 0:18:35And three of those mean an automatic year's ban from competition.
0:18:36 > 0:18:40When the news came out that you got the ban, you get the letter.
0:18:40 > 0:18:44Did it say in there, "We are going to ban you for a year"?
0:18:44 > 0:18:48I think at Crystal Palace, which was the last race I'd run,
0:18:48 > 0:18:52where I actually came last, my Achilles had both blown up
0:18:52 > 0:18:59so it was bad anyway and then they told me that I had a missed test.
0:18:59 > 0:19:01They told me I had the three missed tests.
0:19:01 > 0:19:03And, at that point, I actually didn't really care
0:19:03 > 0:19:06because I thought, I'm Commonwealth Champion right now.
0:19:06 > 0:19:08I've just come last in my event.
0:19:08 > 0:19:12I'm supposed to be going to the Europeans. That is of no concern.
0:19:12 > 0:19:13They can sort that out themselves.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16But I remember at that point people were coming to see me
0:19:16 > 0:19:19to discuss this case which, by that point,
0:19:19 > 0:19:22I thought this is not going to go away.
0:19:22 > 0:19:27This really is quite a horrific position to be in.
0:19:27 > 0:19:30Yeah, it just kept getting worse and worse.
0:19:30 > 0:19:32I remember I had a call from the lawyer saying
0:19:32 > 0:19:35that this is actually a case.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37This is not something we can just...
0:19:37 > 0:19:40We actually have to go through the proper channels to deal with this
0:19:40 > 0:19:43and that's when I really started getting scared.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46I really started getting quite upset.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49I remember there was one time I was crying. I couldn't actually train.
0:19:49 > 0:19:54I actually realised that this is not going to be nice at all.
0:19:54 > 0:19:56Would you say she's frightened?
0:19:56 > 0:19:59She's frightened. She's very, very stressed.
0:19:59 > 0:20:02Three missed tests, that doesn't make sense at all.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06I mean, if they're informed about this and they know, hey, one more
0:20:06 > 0:20:08and she's not eligible to run.
0:20:08 > 0:20:10Everyone's gotta do what they gotta do at that point
0:20:10 > 0:20:12and no-one did anything.
0:20:12 > 0:20:17- And through your own stupidity. - Yeah, pretty much that. Stupidity.
0:20:17 > 0:20:19You know, sometimes I kind of had this fantasy
0:20:19 > 0:20:22where if I could just go back and literally just turn back time
0:20:22 > 0:20:24and then have a different output,
0:20:24 > 0:20:27sometimes I wake up and think it was a dream.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30It didn't actually happen and then...
0:20:30 > 0:20:33Yeah, in a split second it's changed.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36And then when you get the ban,
0:20:36 > 0:20:39you then have to deal with
0:20:39 > 0:20:42the public's perception of you.
0:20:42 > 0:20:45- Exactly and that was the worst thing. - Suddenly you're, oh, drug cheat.
0:20:45 > 0:20:50Exactly. That was the worst thing but I think at the time I realised that
0:20:50 > 0:20:54once it had gotten out, it doesn't matter whether it was,
0:20:54 > 0:20:57um, an innocent missed drugs.
0:20:57 > 0:21:00I think once you've got the word "drugs", it's completely over
0:21:00 > 0:21:05and I knew that and I thought this is going to follow me
0:21:05 > 0:21:07for the rest of my life, rest of my career.
0:21:09 > 0:21:12The day before it came out in the media, she telephoned me
0:21:12 > 0:21:15and said, "They're saying I've missed three tests"
0:21:15 > 0:21:18and I was like, "What do you mean?"
0:21:18 > 0:21:20I said "Were you aware of this?"
0:21:20 > 0:21:22She said, "No, I wasn't.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25"It's going to come out in the press tomorrow."
0:21:25 > 0:21:28Next thing you know it's in the papers everywhere, everywhere.
0:21:28 > 0:21:34And, yeah, it was very, very hard to take. At times I felt...
0:21:34 > 0:21:37I actually thought if I could change places with her I would.
0:21:37 > 0:21:40Christine's a very book smart person.
0:21:40 > 0:21:43She has an abundance of sense in her head,
0:21:43 > 0:21:47and many accused her of not having the same in terms of common sense.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50She maybe doesn't do things on a daily basis that other athletes
0:21:50 > 0:21:53would find really easy to do because they organise themselves better.
0:21:53 > 0:21:55That doesn't mean that she's therefore obviously,
0:21:55 > 0:21:59in any shape or form, a cheat in our sport, and she's not.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01I can honestly say that I'm not a drugs cheat.
0:22:01 > 0:22:05I have been tested during the time of my ban.
0:22:05 > 0:22:07I've been tested during the time of competition
0:22:07 > 0:22:11and I will continue to be tested so, you know, I can't control what
0:22:11 > 0:22:14other people are going to think of me, but what I can control is
0:22:14 > 0:22:18how I approach my training and how I keep myself focused for next year.
0:22:18 > 0:22:21It wasn't just me, it was my family, and that's what really upset me.
0:22:21 > 0:22:24When I thought about my family and how they had to go through that,
0:22:24 > 0:22:26it's not just you, you drag everyone else down with you.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29It was my coaches, it was my agents, it was my whole team,
0:22:29 > 0:22:32my brothers, my mum, my dad, my friends.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34You feel you've disappointed them.
0:22:34 > 0:22:37Yeah, I remember my brother, which was heartbreaking, saying,
0:22:37 > 0:22:39"Oh, somebody said something at school"
0:22:39 > 0:22:42and I thought, "Ugh, yes, not nice. Best to just ignore them."
0:22:42 > 0:22:44That's all you can say.
0:22:44 > 0:22:48It's my fault that they're having to deal with that.
0:22:48 > 0:22:51And whilst worshipping at her local church one Sunday,
0:22:51 > 0:22:55Christine found the congregation rallying around her.
0:22:55 > 0:22:59At the time we had a service firming her here
0:22:59 > 0:23:03and she actually burst into tears,
0:23:03 > 0:23:07she cried as we spoke about her.
0:23:07 > 0:23:10We affirmed our love for her and our support for her.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13I think she found that very supportive.
0:23:13 > 0:23:17Life has to continue, life is full of all sorts of tests
0:23:17 > 0:23:20that we have to undergo, every one of us.
0:23:20 > 0:23:24Life is not perfect and there are downs and the ups and we have
0:23:24 > 0:23:28to do what we can in every situation and try and be positive about life.
0:23:28 > 0:23:33So everything just collapsed on top of you and that's a point
0:23:33 > 0:23:37when your faith, not only in yourself and the system,
0:23:37 > 0:23:43was in a God that you have trusted and been with all these years is...
0:23:43 > 0:23:44Where is He?
0:23:44 > 0:23:49Yeah, but the thing is, I wasn't at all angry at all. I wasn't.
0:23:49 > 0:23:53Obviously I would have liked, "Oh, why don't you help me remember?"
0:23:53 > 0:23:58I think we always go round saying, you know, "Why me? Why me?"
0:23:58 > 0:24:01You know, like, when I drive my car and there's an accident on the road
0:24:01 > 0:24:03you kind of think, "Oh, thank God that wasn't me."
0:24:03 > 0:24:07But it happened to somebody and that somebody could be anybody
0:24:07 > 0:24:10so it's almost like, why not me, you know,
0:24:10 > 0:24:14and I thought I'd been given a great opportunity to respond to this
0:24:14 > 0:24:18and be the better person.
0:24:18 > 0:24:22I'm not going to start mud-slinging and saying, "It wasn't my fault"
0:24:22 > 0:24:24and, "These guys are being really rude about me."
0:24:24 > 0:24:29My mum did say that some situations, it's a test,
0:24:29 > 0:24:31all this is some kind of test,
0:24:31 > 0:24:33and you feel like you've been stretched to your limit
0:24:33 > 0:24:35but ultimately you will go higher
0:24:35 > 0:24:37than anyone could ever think you're going to go.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40It was a dark place for her, it really, really was,
0:24:40 > 0:24:44and that's understandable because outside of not ticking the boxes and
0:24:44 > 0:24:47doing something, which she should have done in terms of notifying
0:24:47 > 0:24:51people, she technically hadn't done anything wrong in terms of cheating.
0:24:51 > 0:24:53And that's hard to take as an athlete
0:24:53 > 0:24:56if you're accused of something you haven't actually done.
0:24:57 > 0:25:00Understanding that this was God's way of testing her,
0:25:00 > 0:25:04Christine responded in the only way she knew, by retreating,
0:25:04 > 0:25:10not to a sofa and the biscuit tin, but to the track and hard work.
0:25:10 > 0:25:12My coach just got me a programme.
0:25:12 > 0:25:14He was like, "Chris, you're going to turn this around."
0:25:14 > 0:25:17I don't know what he saw, I have no idea what he saw,
0:25:17 > 0:25:19but I just followed and I thought, I've got nothing else.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22I remember like my mum was saying, "Why are you training so much?
0:25:22 > 0:25:25"You don't even know if you're going to run again."
0:25:25 > 0:25:27She just had the belief that she would come back
0:25:27 > 0:25:30so, you know, she was still training as if she was an athlete
0:25:30 > 0:25:34even though everything, she literally got banished,
0:25:34 > 0:25:37pushed to the side. You know, she was almost forgotten.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40What gave you the strength to turn things round at that time?
0:25:40 > 0:25:46I just believed that, um, God doesn't want us to just be down and out.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49We're of no use if we're just miserable and sad.
0:25:49 > 0:25:53He's given us all kind of a gift to go out and do
0:25:53 > 0:25:56and you can't do that if you're at home crying and moping.
0:25:56 > 0:25:58So that's what kind of encouraged me to go out and train,
0:25:58 > 0:26:01no matter what happens. This is what I'm good at.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06A feature of the athletics calendar were the Golden Leagues,
0:26:06 > 0:26:09where athletes compete for money and world ranking points.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15Christine's ban meant that all she could do was pretend
0:26:15 > 0:26:17to prepare for these events.
0:26:17 > 0:26:22When there was a Golden League we'd actually simulate if we were there,
0:26:22 > 0:26:26practise it like getting on a plane so we don't do nothing on that day.
0:26:26 > 0:26:28Next day we turn to the track, warm up, do a few strides,
0:26:28 > 0:26:30then go back home.
0:26:30 > 0:26:34Then we come back on the third day and then we run a fast 250,
0:26:34 > 0:26:39a fast 250, then shut it down, then get back in and work again,
0:26:39 > 0:26:42and then we just mimic the season just behind closed doors.
0:26:43 > 0:26:48By August 2007, Christine's ban was finally lifted and she was selected
0:26:48 > 0:26:54to compete in the World Athletics Championships in Osaka, Japan.
0:26:54 > 0:26:57I thank God to this day, even though I hadn't competed all year,
0:26:57 > 0:27:00but he selected me to join the other two 400 metre runners,
0:27:00 > 0:27:03showed great faith in me and that was really nice.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06And then you get to Japan and you walk into the athletes' village?
0:27:06 > 0:27:10Yes. That was weird cos, at that point I knew that all the athletes
0:27:10 > 0:27:13had understood what had gone on and I think they understood that
0:27:13 > 0:27:15it could've happened to any one of them but I think at the same time
0:27:15 > 0:27:17people didn't quite know what to do with me.
0:27:17 > 0:27:20I don't think they quite knew where to put me.
0:27:20 > 0:27:24When you carry baggage, people can see you're carrying baggage,
0:27:24 > 0:27:26but I thought, you know what, I'm here. Thank God I'm here.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29I don't really know what's going to happen from here on now,
0:27:29 > 0:27:32but I'm here and I really have to make the most of this opportunity.
0:27:32 > 0:27:35- COMMENTATOR:- What a story for the Commonwealth champion.
0:27:35 > 0:27:39Christine had a point to prove but she was far from being a favourite.
0:27:39 > 0:27:42She had not competed internationally all year,
0:27:42 > 0:27:47and 50 metres from the line she was out of medal contention.
0:27:47 > 0:27:50Then she found her inner strength.
0:27:51 > 0:27:53- COMMENTATOR:- Can it be a British athlete?
0:27:53 > 0:27:56Christine Ohuruogu is perhaps going to get there.
0:27:56 > 0:27:58Christine Ohuruogu wins the gold.
0:27:58 > 0:28:01She is the world champion!
0:28:01 > 0:28:04It's you.
0:28:04 > 0:28:07After a year in the sporting wilderness,
0:28:07 > 0:28:11glory on one of the world's biggest athletic stages.
0:28:11 > 0:28:14I worked, I trained, got up every single day. I did my work.
0:28:14 > 0:28:17I didn't know quite what I was working for.
0:28:20 > 0:28:24But despite winning, the reception to Christine's medal
0:28:24 > 0:28:26was far from golden.
0:28:26 > 0:28:30In fact, from certain elements of the press, it was just plain mean.
0:28:31 > 0:28:35They hinted that Christine's win was drug-fuelled.
0:28:37 > 0:28:40How do you handle that level of negativity?
0:28:40 > 0:28:43I just thought, at that point, I just thought,
0:28:43 > 0:28:45you really are showing your ignorance right now
0:28:45 > 0:28:50and it's not even just ignorance. It actually is stupidity. It really is.
0:28:50 > 0:28:53But I thought, I'm not going to fight you guys.
0:28:53 > 0:28:57I'm really not going to fight but it really did steal my shine, honestly.
0:28:57 > 0:28:59It really dulled that medal way down.
0:28:59 > 0:29:02It kind of dulled it into a bronze kind of look,
0:29:02 > 0:29:05but I learned a whole heap of lessons from that,
0:29:05 > 0:29:09even how to carry myself and how to present myself
0:29:09 > 0:29:12and dealing with the media who I didn't really want to talk to.
0:29:12 > 0:29:17I think at the time it was just, you know, guys, let it go, you know.
0:29:17 > 0:29:20I've explained, I've explained, I've explained.
0:29:20 > 0:29:24Listen, my case notes are available. We have internet now.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27I honestly don't know what more to tell you.
0:29:31 > 0:29:34But a shadow was cast, and with the London Olympics
0:29:34 > 0:29:37in the forefront of the press's mind, newspapers were saying
0:29:37 > 0:29:41that the last person who should be the poster girl of the Games
0:29:41 > 0:29:43was Christine Ohuruogu.
0:29:43 > 0:29:47Christine's mum, Pat, wasn't having any of it.
0:29:47 > 0:29:51She rang a journalist who had been particularly spiteful.
0:29:51 > 0:29:55Yeah, I think she gave him an earful and then we didn't see much articles
0:29:55 > 0:29:59again from that particular journalist.
0:29:59 > 0:30:03Yeah, it was good, I think, the way we all stuck together as well.
0:30:03 > 0:30:06I know Pat very well as one of our church wardens,
0:30:06 > 0:30:11and Pat is a formidable person, if I may say so.
0:30:11 > 0:30:17She's a very, very strong lady. A very, very firm Christian faith
0:30:17 > 0:30:20with her own very strong views within that faith.
0:30:20 > 0:30:25And it doesn't surprise me at all to hear that Pat rang this person
0:30:25 > 0:30:28and told that person off.
0:30:28 > 0:30:30I was really proud of her cos if she'd suggested to me that
0:30:30 > 0:30:33she was going to call him, I would have said, "Don't call him."
0:30:33 > 0:30:35But I was really proud of her for doing that.
0:30:35 > 0:30:37It took some guts and I think when you, as a parent,
0:30:37 > 0:30:39when you see that happening to somebody,
0:30:39 > 0:30:42you just think they keep writing rubbish all the time...
0:30:42 > 0:30:45But I was really happy she had the guts to do that
0:30:45 > 0:30:48cos you don't take on the press, you really don't.
0:30:50 > 0:30:53Christine's World Federation ban might have been lifted,
0:30:53 > 0:30:55but there was another problem.
0:30:55 > 0:31:00British Olympic Association rules state that an athlete with ANY drugs
0:31:00 > 0:31:04infringement receives a lifetime ban from competing in the Games.
0:31:04 > 0:31:07So no Beijing in 2008
0:31:07 > 0:31:10and no London in 2012.
0:31:10 > 0:31:12The Olympics have said, "No, you're banned for life."
0:31:12 > 0:31:14Yeah, so, I had to go home
0:31:14 > 0:31:18but I thought, I'm not going to get my hands involved in this.
0:31:18 > 0:31:20The people that be are dealing with this.
0:31:20 > 0:31:24I just prayed about it. There's not really much I can do.
0:31:24 > 0:31:27What do you ask for when you're praying?
0:31:27 > 0:31:31- I want to go to the Games. - Simple as that?
0:31:31 > 0:31:34Yeah, but I knew that my heart's completely clean.
0:31:34 > 0:31:37If I'd done something wrong, I'd understand.
0:31:37 > 0:31:39If you do something wrong you take the punishment.
0:31:39 > 0:31:43My faults are not as big as the other people's who have actually
0:31:43 > 0:31:46taken drugs, so please let me go?
0:31:48 > 0:31:51And when Christine says she prays, she really does
0:31:51 > 0:31:54and believes in the power of it.
0:31:54 > 0:31:58I think when she turns to Him, He always solves the problem.
0:31:58 > 0:32:00You know, I'll be a mad man.
0:32:00 > 0:32:03"Oh, please God help me with this mad man."
0:32:03 > 0:32:07Obviously, all jokes aside, she believes in it 100%.
0:32:07 > 0:32:09100%. That's her faith.
0:32:09 > 0:32:11- COMMENTATOR:- Christine Ohuruogu wins the gold!
0:32:11 > 0:32:14Fortunately, watching her gold medal win in Osaka,
0:32:14 > 0:32:17and possibly answering her prayers,
0:32:17 > 0:32:21was an ally, who happened to be a top sports barrister.
0:32:21 > 0:32:26I was at the World Championships in 2007.
0:32:26 > 0:32:28I was a guest there of the International Federation
0:32:28 > 0:32:32and had done legal work over a number of years and we watched
0:32:32 > 0:32:36Christine win the gold medal in a very exciting fashion.
0:32:36 > 0:32:41And I was aware, of course, because her case had been much publicised
0:32:41 > 0:32:44and I said, "If necessary,
0:32:44 > 0:32:47"I will represent that young woman for nothing."
0:32:47 > 0:32:50Just over a year after getting a lifetime ban from competing
0:32:50 > 0:32:52in the Olympic Games,
0:32:52 > 0:32:55the British runner Christine Ohuruogu has had the ban lifted.
0:32:56 > 0:32:58In November 2007,
0:32:58 > 0:33:01following a hearing of the Court of Arbitration of Sport,
0:33:01 > 0:33:05Christine's Olympic ban was finally overturned.
0:33:05 > 0:33:08It seemed that it was simply a question of persuading
0:33:08 > 0:33:13the tribunal that there was a reasonable explanation for the fact
0:33:13 > 0:33:16that she'd missed this third test.
0:33:20 > 0:33:23I would not have taken her case on
0:33:23 > 0:33:25had I not believed that she was innocent.
0:33:31 > 0:33:35Christine could now be selected to run in the 2008 Beijing Olympics
0:33:35 > 0:33:37that summer.
0:33:39 > 0:33:42But in Beijing there was still doubts about her ability,
0:33:42 > 0:33:45that she'd got lucky in Osaka with a close finish
0:33:45 > 0:33:49and that some of the bigger names in her event weren't even competing.
0:33:49 > 0:33:53To prove herself, she needed to pull out all the stops.
0:33:58 > 0:34:02- NEWS REPORTER:- British interest focuses on Christine Ohuruogu
0:34:02 > 0:34:04going for a medal in the 400 metres.
0:34:04 > 0:34:06That really is one of the Blue Riband events
0:34:06 > 0:34:08for women's track and field.
0:34:08 > 0:34:13But the night before the final, as usual, she'd didn't get any sleep.
0:34:13 > 0:34:15It's three days of madness, I call it.
0:34:15 > 0:34:17She never sleeps at a championships.
0:34:17 > 0:34:20She sleeps on the day, in the day of the championships.
0:34:20 > 0:34:23Who does that? WHO does that? I want her to sleep the night before.
0:34:23 > 0:34:25"I can't sleep, coach, can't sleep."
0:34:25 > 0:34:27Then she gets up in the morning and has a lie down
0:34:27 > 0:34:31and she actually sleeps in the day, the afternoon or evening,
0:34:31 > 0:34:37and she sleeps all day long and then gets up and goes, "OK."
0:34:38 > 0:34:39Before any race,
0:34:39 > 0:34:44all the athletes competing have to sit in what's known as a call room,
0:34:44 > 0:34:47designed to ensure the smooth running of a championship.
0:34:47 > 0:34:50Usually the reason they put us there is to check our shoes.
0:34:50 > 0:34:52They're continuously checking, checking our bags,
0:34:52 > 0:34:55checking our shoes, our bibs. Check, check, check, check, check.
0:34:55 > 0:34:58So we probably go through two call rooms
0:34:58 > 0:35:02- before you get onto the track.- Wow.
0:35:02 > 0:35:05So you're in a small room, you and seven other girls,
0:35:05 > 0:35:07and we just sit there.
0:35:09 > 0:35:12'There was a strong field for the 400m final.
0:35:12 > 0:35:16'World champion sprinter Anastasiya Kapachinskyer.
0:35:16 > 0:35:21'Jamaica's Shericka Williams, a world silver relay medallist.
0:35:21 > 0:35:25'And the favourite, America's Sanya Richards.'
0:35:25 > 0:35:28- How was Sanya looking? - She was very confident.
0:35:28 > 0:35:31I remember thinking, "How can you look so chilled, man?
0:35:31 > 0:35:33"The rest of us are like crying and you're just..."
0:35:33 > 0:35:36Yeah, she was really confident.
0:35:36 > 0:35:39It did surprise me at the time.
0:35:39 > 0:35:44But I thought, "You know what, I really want to win this."
0:35:48 > 0:35:51Christine's World and Commonwealth titles mattered to her,
0:35:51 > 0:35:54but this was a big one.
0:35:54 > 0:35:58To win it would be proof that she was a genuine world class athlete.
0:36:00 > 0:36:02There was an added pressure too.
0:36:02 > 0:36:05The British team hadn't yet won a gold on the track.
0:36:05 > 0:36:10MUSIC: "The Funeral" by Band Of Horses
0:36:13 > 0:36:16# Really too late to call
0:36:16 > 0:36:21# So we wait for... #
0:36:22 > 0:36:24- COMMENTATOR:- There's a medal up for grabs
0:36:24 > 0:36:26and Williams is coming through for Jamaica.
0:36:26 > 0:36:30Christine Ohuruogu takes the gold medal!
0:36:30 > 0:36:33The world champion becomes the Olympic champion!
0:36:38 > 0:36:41You never think it's a reality, just something you dream about
0:36:41 > 0:36:43so now that I've actually...
0:36:43 > 0:36:46I dunno, I was crossing the line thinking, "Oh, my gosh, I've won."
0:36:48 > 0:36:53Christine winning that Olympic title off the back of the world title,
0:36:53 > 0:36:56it brought me to tears, it brought many people to tears,
0:36:56 > 0:36:59because when you know somebody, and you don't just respect them as
0:36:59 > 0:37:03a fellow athlete, cos she was doing the same event that I used to do.
0:37:03 > 0:37:06She'd come back from all of that and won a world and Olympic medal.
0:37:06 > 0:37:11I went down to see her on trackside after her victory in Beijing,
0:37:11 > 0:37:15and it was a very, very special moment
0:37:15 > 0:37:17and a very poignant moment for me
0:37:17 > 0:37:19when she came over and we gave each other a hug.
0:37:19 > 0:37:21There was a level of respect,
0:37:21 > 0:37:23because I'd won an Olympic bronze medal.
0:37:23 > 0:37:25She'd gone one better and won the Olympic title.
0:37:27 > 0:37:31Christine's determination to win has its roots in many places,
0:37:31 > 0:37:35but when competing abroad she has a secret weapon.
0:37:36 > 0:37:40No matter where we go in the world she always finds a church.
0:37:40 > 0:37:43I mean, South Africa, America.
0:37:43 > 0:37:46Florida. We've been in LA.
0:37:46 > 0:37:48We've been away to Lausanne
0:37:48 > 0:37:52and if we are staying till Sunday she'll find a church to go
0:37:52 > 0:37:54and practise her faith and see some of the girls.
0:37:54 > 0:37:58If not, they will find a room and sit down and pray.
0:37:58 > 0:38:02The faith is one of the things she believes in, a God.
0:38:02 > 0:38:05It gives her the spirit to move forward.
0:38:08 > 0:38:14And this spirit, strength and also her style of winning got her noticed
0:38:14 > 0:38:18throughout the athletics world, storming to gold in the last 50m.
0:38:20 > 0:38:23- COMMENTATOR:- Christine Ohuruogu takes the gold medal!
0:38:23 > 0:38:26Christine has always run like that.
0:38:26 > 0:38:28She's always been a late finisher.
0:38:28 > 0:38:32She doesn't follow the textbook kind of 400m running technique,
0:38:32 > 0:38:36but it's become synonymous with the way Christine Ohuruogu runs.
0:38:36 > 0:38:39- COMMENTATOR:- Christine Ohuruogu takes the gold medal!
0:38:39 > 0:38:44I love it. She has that extra boost, that kick, but, you know what,
0:38:44 > 0:38:46when we're watching it it's not nice to watch.
0:38:46 > 0:38:49You're just shouting at the TV, "Come on!" for any athlete you know.
0:38:49 > 0:38:52We know what they're going through.
0:38:52 > 0:38:56How much work and hard work and pain they've put into it.
0:38:56 > 0:39:00When they do what they have to do to get a medal...
0:39:00 > 0:39:04At the time, Christine, she creates that excitement. It's good to watch.
0:39:04 > 0:39:08I know what she's feeling when she's running cos she's in pain, hurting.
0:39:08 > 0:39:13- What's your style? You run and hold back...- Yeah.
0:39:13 > 0:39:15..and in the last 100 metres?
0:39:15 > 0:39:20My final bit is always my strongest bit because I just have a very
0:39:20 > 0:39:24high tolerance when it comes again to lactic and pain.
0:39:24 > 0:39:26I can work very well in lactic.
0:39:26 > 0:39:30And lactic is when every fibre of your body is going STOP!
0:39:30 > 0:39:32It just hurts so much.
0:39:32 > 0:39:36I think, because you're running at speed, the kind of times,
0:39:36 > 0:39:40it's a flat out sprint all the way.
0:39:43 > 0:39:46And Christine's way of pipping people at the post
0:39:46 > 0:39:48is starting to influence other athletic coaches,
0:39:48 > 0:39:52even in the famed home of Usain Bolt,
0:39:52 > 0:39:55about how their sprinters should run the 400 metres.
0:39:55 > 0:40:00I got paid a praise from Steven Francis in Jamaica
0:40:00 > 0:40:03and he's done this over the years, how she runs,
0:40:03 > 0:40:08because he told me, five, six years ago, he goes,
0:40:08 > 0:40:10"If you get it right, she couldn't be beaten."
0:40:10 > 0:40:12He was being honest.
0:40:12 > 0:40:14He goes, "I have to change the plan how my athletes run"
0:40:14 > 0:40:17and he went back and he changed his philosophy.
0:40:20 > 0:40:24With Commonwealth, World and Olympic titles under her belt,
0:40:24 > 0:40:27Christine should have been a household name by now.
0:40:27 > 0:40:29But it wasn't the case.
0:40:29 > 0:40:30Partly this was out of choice
0:40:30 > 0:40:33to have a quiet, family-centred Christian life.
0:40:36 > 0:40:40That says to me that Christine is content in her life.
0:40:40 > 0:40:45She hasn't got to expose and let people into her private life.
0:40:45 > 0:40:47That's her private life.
0:40:47 > 0:40:50She's happy, you know. You see that big smile on her face,
0:40:50 > 0:40:54and you know being in the limelight obviously she doesn't want that.
0:40:54 > 0:40:55Each to their own.
0:40:55 > 0:40:59She doesn't court the press. She doesn't court the media.
0:40:59 > 0:41:01She won't do big television programmes.
0:41:01 > 0:41:05She's not really that interested in kind of raking in
0:41:05 > 0:41:09or getting the limelight outside of what she does.
0:41:09 > 0:41:11Because of that, therefore,
0:41:11 > 0:41:14you can probably ask a lot of people on the street and they'll...
0:41:14 > 0:41:16One, they'll pronounce her name wrong,
0:41:16 > 0:41:18or two, they've never heard of her.
0:41:18 > 0:41:22She doesn't tweet. She does not Facebook.
0:41:22 > 0:41:26So where people need attention, she's not that type of person.
0:41:26 > 0:41:29The social side, I mean, she doesn't go out,
0:41:29 > 0:41:32and if she does go out it's either to the cinema or something local.
0:41:32 > 0:41:35I think when you finish, you can do all that when you finish,
0:41:35 > 0:41:38but they know OF Christine
0:41:38 > 0:41:40but they never see Christine.
0:41:43 > 0:41:47Those who know her say Christine almost belongs to another era.
0:41:47 > 0:41:50Pre-professionalism, where athletes were free from the pressures
0:41:50 > 0:41:54of having to deliver a 24/7 public persona.
0:41:57 > 0:42:00I think if you look at Christine, she probably would have been very
0:42:00 > 0:42:06comfortable in the Ann Packer, Mary Rand, Mary Peters age,
0:42:06 > 0:42:09cos in those days you went to work for a living,
0:42:09 > 0:42:12you went off to the Olympics, you won a gold medal and came home
0:42:12 > 0:42:13and went back to work.
0:42:16 > 0:42:18But that was then.
0:42:18 > 0:42:21In 2008, as Olympic and world champion,
0:42:21 > 0:42:24Christine needed to defend her titles.
0:42:24 > 0:42:28First, the Berlin World Championships in 2009.
0:42:28 > 0:42:31But in the run up to that event, she picked up an injury.
0:42:33 > 0:42:362009, you should be on the crest of a wave.
0:42:36 > 0:42:42I tore my quads just maybe three weeks out of the World Champs
0:42:42 > 0:42:45so it meant I still got to the World Champs
0:42:45 > 0:42:50but I was obviously in no position to defend my title.
0:42:50 > 0:42:54But I always say, no matter what, you always go in,
0:42:54 > 0:42:57you defend your title no matter what position you're in.
0:42:57 > 0:43:00You go out and you fight.
0:43:01 > 0:43:03Two years on, more bad luck.
0:43:03 > 0:43:06Disqualification in the heats of the World Championships
0:43:06 > 0:43:09in Daegu, South Korea, after a false start.
0:43:10 > 0:43:14Again, Christine was being tested.
0:43:15 > 0:43:18And London 2012 beckoned.
0:43:18 > 0:43:20This must be a slightly surreal moment for you
0:43:20 > 0:43:24- to be standing in the stadium. - This is really, really weird.
0:43:24 > 0:43:29I came, maybe a few months ago and, erm, I'm shaking now.
0:43:32 > 0:43:36In the wet during pre-Olympic races, Christine was on form.
0:43:36 > 0:43:38- COMMENTATOR: - The world champion can't hang on.
0:43:38 > 0:43:41Christine Ohuruogu is going to take the win.
0:43:41 > 0:43:43But winning here didn't matter.
0:43:43 > 0:43:46It was the Olympic title she wanted to defend.
0:43:46 > 0:43:49Not just because it could be won in front of her family,
0:43:49 > 0:43:50friends and country...
0:43:52 > 0:43:55..but because the stadium was in her own parish.
0:43:55 > 0:43:58- COMMENTATOR:- Come on, Christine.
0:44:08 > 0:44:10Sanya Richards-Ross coming through
0:44:10 > 0:44:12and Christine Ohuruogu is coming again.
0:44:12 > 0:44:15Can she get there this time? Will she make it?
0:44:15 > 0:44:18Sanya Richards-Ross takes the gold!
0:44:19 > 0:44:25Well, the race, again, you had us all up on our feet and Sanya got it.
0:44:25 > 0:44:29- She did, she did.- You got silver and you looked devastated at the end.
0:44:29 > 0:44:32- I did.- Dazed and devastated. - I did, yeah.
0:44:32 > 0:44:35I think it was almost like I didn't know what to do with myself.
0:44:37 > 0:44:40You know, I really wanted that so much and I think when you know you're
0:44:40 > 0:44:43so close but you just run out of track,
0:44:43 > 0:44:45that's the worst position to be in.
0:44:45 > 0:44:48To know that you're coming and you're going and going and going
0:44:48 > 0:44:52and going and going and then it's over and I'm not finished.
0:44:52 > 0:44:54I'm not finished and I didn't get what I wanted.
0:44:54 > 0:44:56Another 50 yards and you could've done it?
0:44:56 > 0:44:59Yeah, I just think if only, if only, if only, if only, if only, if only,
0:44:59 > 0:45:01and that's the worst position to be in - if only.
0:45:01 > 0:45:05But I was upset and I really, really was, but I must admit
0:45:05 > 0:45:09once I'd done my lap of honour,
0:45:09 > 0:45:11everybody stayed to watch me get my medal.
0:45:11 > 0:45:15I thought these people don't care if you're silver, gold, bronze.
0:45:15 > 0:45:18They're just happy to see you and then when I went back and looked,
0:45:18 > 0:45:21I thought I've not been around for the last three years.
0:45:21 > 0:45:24How many people can come and medal consecutive Olympic Games?
0:45:24 > 0:45:29It's not done that often, it really isn't so I kind of was disappointed.
0:45:29 > 0:45:32I thought I should have been a bit more graceful.
0:45:32 > 0:45:35- COMMENTATOR:- The brilliant silver medal.
0:45:37 > 0:45:41Lloyd Cowan was less concerned with Christine's reaction to
0:45:41 > 0:45:46coming second to how Team Ohuruogu lost out on gold in the first place.
0:45:46 > 0:45:50Particularly, why Christine didn't stamp her authority from the start.
0:45:52 > 0:45:542012 was fantastic
0:45:54 > 0:45:58but 2012, it's the only championships I went in a bit over-confident.
0:45:58 > 0:46:01I didn't tell her that I think she could do what she wanted to do
0:46:01 > 0:46:04but she was too blase for me.
0:46:04 > 0:46:06I wanted her to win the heats, I wanted her to win the semis.
0:46:06 > 0:46:10She was OK with finishing second. "I'm OK, I got through, coach."
0:46:10 > 0:46:12I keep thinking, but that's not the way.
0:46:12 > 0:46:14The way is, when you go to a championship and you're winning,
0:46:14 > 0:46:18you make a statement to the girls that, "I'm here."
0:46:21 > 0:46:24Christine might have followed a gold in one Olympics
0:46:24 > 0:46:27with a silver in another, but she didn't become one of the household
0:46:27 > 0:46:31names associated with London 2012.
0:46:31 > 0:46:34Instead the media focused on other Olympic medallists.
0:46:34 > 0:46:35- COMMENTATOR:- It's gold!
0:46:40 > 0:46:43So, yet again, Christine did what she always did -
0:46:43 > 0:46:45went back to the track.
0:46:45 > 0:46:47For her next big challenge,
0:46:47 > 0:46:50this year's World Championships in Moscow.
0:46:50 > 0:46:54What I love about Christine, and admire, is that she will come back
0:46:54 > 0:46:57and bounce back from all this negativity
0:46:57 > 0:47:01and she will just deliver on the track.
0:47:01 > 0:47:04She's the perfect example of let the running do the talking.
0:47:04 > 0:47:07She doesn't have to say nothing,
0:47:07 > 0:47:09but she just produces what she has to do on the track
0:47:09 > 0:47:13and that's got to give her credit and due for that, definitely.
0:47:13 > 0:47:18I think it's a matter of continuing. It's not giving up.
0:47:18 > 0:47:21I think we have seen that in the way that she runs.
0:47:21 > 0:47:24There is a determination there coming from her faith
0:47:24 > 0:47:28that gives the spark.
0:47:28 > 0:47:31You continue whatever the situation. What else can we do, really?
0:47:32 > 0:47:36Inside the athletics world, Christine is universally admired
0:47:36 > 0:47:40for her work ethic and, as an acknowledgement of that,
0:47:40 > 0:47:43she was not only selected to run, but appointed Team Captain.
0:47:45 > 0:47:48It was a very proud moment.
0:47:48 > 0:47:51I think her leadership skills shone through.
0:47:51 > 0:47:54Yeah, she was very good at lifting the team.
0:47:54 > 0:47:57They all said, you know, there were a lot of comments within the team
0:47:57 > 0:48:00about how inspirational she was
0:48:00 > 0:48:03and how much of a role model she is.
0:48:03 > 0:48:06I think that's one of the best things I think happened
0:48:06 > 0:48:07was to be made a Team Captain,
0:48:07 > 0:48:12cos usually I just like to sit in the background and just focus on myself
0:48:12 > 0:48:15but it was nice to have other athletes in my charge.
0:48:15 > 0:48:18- Yeah, like Mo Farah!- Yeah. - That's not bad, is it?
0:48:18 > 0:48:21I can't tell him what to do though. He'll probably tell me what to do.
0:48:21 > 0:48:24But it was really nice and really good to be on a team with Mo,
0:48:24 > 0:48:26to be with someone who's so successful
0:48:26 > 0:48:29and, you know, my sister was on the team as well.
0:48:32 > 0:48:37Meet Victoria Ohuruogu, Christine's younger sister.
0:48:37 > 0:48:41Just 20, she is another potential world class athlete in the making
0:48:41 > 0:48:45and was selected to be part of the Moscow 2013 squad.
0:48:45 > 0:48:49She was so in awe of Mo and how he handled himself.
0:48:49 > 0:48:52You know, I think, for her, he was one of the stand-up people.
0:48:52 > 0:48:55I think after he'd won his 5K, the day after he'd won,
0:48:55 > 0:48:59he was just sitting there having dinner, and my sister's like,
0:48:59 > 0:49:01"Why is he even here eating?"
0:49:01 > 0:49:04I mean, he needs to eat but I think it was just his whole demeanour
0:49:04 > 0:49:08and I think for me, and you know for us to be on the team
0:49:08 > 0:49:12and to have these youngsters underneath us,
0:49:12 > 0:49:16who we were kind of trying to school, was a really nice feeling.
0:49:16 > 0:49:17It really was.
0:49:17 > 0:49:22- COMMENTATOR:- Christine Ohuruogu has been our number one for a long time.
0:49:22 > 0:49:26As Team Captain in Moscow, she was expected to lead by example,
0:49:26 > 0:49:29something she did in dramatic fashion.
0:49:33 > 0:49:35- COMMENTATOR:- It's a clean start.
0:49:40 > 0:49:43Christine Ohuruogu will start to run it down and is coming fast
0:49:43 > 0:49:48and is coming quick, but will it be quick enough?
0:49:48 > 0:49:51Will she get there? Christine's coming. She might just make it.
0:49:51 > 0:49:53She just made it!
0:49:55 > 0:49:57Did she get it?
0:49:57 > 0:50:00I sat there. She came from miles behind.
0:50:00 > 0:50:03Paula Radcliffe and I were sitting in the stands watching
0:50:03 > 0:50:06and it was a fantastic race but we couldn't tell from where we were
0:50:06 > 0:50:08whether she'd won it or not.
0:50:08 > 0:50:10- COMMENTATOR:- We're waiting.
0:50:10 > 0:50:13She's looking. We're looking.
0:50:13 > 0:50:15She's got it! Another gold medal.
0:50:15 > 0:50:20Christine Ohuruogu is the world champion again!
0:50:20 > 0:50:22It was just drama, it was entertaining
0:50:22 > 0:50:25and it was wonderful to see, but you kind of knew it was going to happen.
0:50:25 > 0:50:27Everybody knew it was going to happen
0:50:27 > 0:50:30apart from Amantle Montsho of Botswana who decided not to
0:50:30 > 0:50:34dip for the line and Christine came through and everybody's going,
0:50:34 > 0:50:37"You silly lady, you know Christine Ohuruogu's going to be coming."
0:50:37 > 0:50:40And she did and she timed it to perfection.
0:50:40 > 0:50:43You know, thank you to everyone at home wishing me well,
0:50:43 > 0:50:46praying for me and I'm just really grateful to be here.
0:50:46 > 0:50:49Honestly, I can't believe it. I feel like I'm dreaming.
0:50:51 > 0:50:55She ran a British Record in the World Championships this year,
0:50:55 > 0:50:57so that's the perfect race for her.
0:50:57 > 0:51:02She'll eventually run faster, and already she is, arguably,
0:51:02 > 0:51:06the most successful female athlete we've ever had in Great Britain.
0:51:14 > 0:51:17Not content with being one of our greatest athletes,
0:51:17 > 0:51:20Christine wants to create a new generation of Olympians
0:51:20 > 0:51:22who can dominate future Games.
0:51:22 > 0:51:23Hi, guys.
0:51:26 > 0:51:29Inspired by her faith to give something back to others,
0:51:29 > 0:51:33she vowed to visit every school in her borough to tell local children
0:51:33 > 0:51:37of what can be achieved from even the most humble of backgrounds.
0:51:37 > 0:51:39My event is not actually very nice.
0:51:39 > 0:51:41It hurts, but in a strange way,
0:51:41 > 0:51:46I actually really enjoy it because every day I push myself really hard.
0:51:46 > 0:51:48I think that gives her her greatest sense of satisfaction,
0:51:48 > 0:51:51knowing that she can give back to the community,
0:51:51 > 0:51:56making them see that, you know, that she's like them,
0:51:56 > 0:52:00she came from the same surroundings, same education system.
0:52:00 > 0:52:03Are you writing on the table?
0:52:03 > 0:52:08Just to give them a belief that if she can do it they can do it too.
0:52:08 > 0:52:11There's a big world out there, and if you just work hard you can achieve
0:52:11 > 0:52:13what you want to go out and achieve.
0:52:13 > 0:52:18It's quite amazing, cos, like, you don't see these people every day.
0:52:18 > 0:52:21It's only once in a lifetime.
0:52:21 > 0:52:24She was over here and she was proper tall.
0:52:24 > 0:52:27There aren't many athletes that do that. I am being honest.
0:52:27 > 0:52:30If there is not a buck or a pound on it, they won't be doing it
0:52:30 > 0:52:32unless they are making something.
0:52:32 > 0:52:37And she is not sort of driven by, I suppose, that way where,
0:52:37 > 0:52:40if I go into school you pay me. I think when it's for kids, no.
0:52:40 > 0:52:42If it's a corporate business I understand that,
0:52:42 > 0:52:44but she is a giving person.
0:52:44 > 0:52:45Go out and enjoy yourself.
0:52:45 > 0:52:48Remember to dream big and keep looking after each other.
0:52:48 > 0:52:50APPLAUSE
0:52:50 > 0:52:53Do you think God has another bit of plan for you?
0:52:53 > 0:52:54I think there's another big plan.
0:52:54 > 0:52:59I don't know what it is but I just feel like this is not the end.
0:52:59 > 0:53:02I think that all that I've been through is leading up to something.
0:53:02 > 0:53:07Everything. I know everything has been quite sequential in helping me
0:53:07 > 0:53:10get to the next bit but I think everything collectively
0:53:10 > 0:53:13is kind of directing me somewhere else.
0:53:13 > 0:53:16As I said, I don't have any idea what it is.
0:53:18 > 0:53:22Christine Ohuruogu has always shunned the spotlight,
0:53:22 > 0:53:25letting her running, Christian beliefs, community work,
0:53:25 > 0:53:29even inspirational children's books, say what needs to be said about her.
0:53:31 > 0:53:34But she's now finally getting the attention she deserves.
0:53:37 > 0:53:41Two weeks ago, she won Sunday Times and Sky Sportswoman of the Year.
0:53:41 > 0:53:45Then Sports Journalist Association Sportswoman of the Year.
0:53:47 > 0:53:52And finally, last week, the big one.
0:53:52 > 0:53:57In front of an audience of 12,000, including hundreds of sports stars,
0:53:57 > 0:53:58Christine received a welcome
0:53:58 > 0:54:02befitting of one the UK's most successful athletes.
0:54:02 > 0:54:04Christine Ohuruogu!
0:54:04 > 0:54:07APPLAUSE
0:54:07 > 0:54:09Olympic gold and silver, two golds.
0:54:09 > 0:54:12The only British woman to win two golds at a World Championships,
0:54:12 > 0:54:13ladies and gentlemen.
0:54:13 > 0:54:15APPLAUSE
0:54:15 > 0:54:18How do you do it every time?
0:54:18 > 0:54:21I don't know exactly how I do it, but me and my coach, we always know that
0:54:21 > 0:54:24the championships are where it's at.
0:54:24 > 0:54:26That's really where I have to go out
0:54:26 > 0:54:30and do everything possible that I can to win.
0:54:30 > 0:54:32We like winning medals, so...
0:54:32 > 0:54:35Best of luck, Christine Ohuruogu.
0:54:35 > 0:54:38She lost out to Andy Murray in the end
0:54:38 > 0:54:41but the honour of being on the short list means a lot to her.
0:54:42 > 0:54:48For Christine to be nominated I think is overwhelming for her,
0:54:48 > 0:54:52to be finally recognised as one of the greatest female
0:54:52 > 0:54:55400 metre runners Britain has ever produced.
0:54:55 > 0:54:58For me, it leaves me emotional
0:54:58 > 0:55:01because it's been a long road.
0:55:01 > 0:55:06And to see it from the beginning and the way we've panned out to now,
0:55:06 > 0:55:09it's been a wonderful journey with the good and the bad,
0:55:09 > 0:55:10but that's what life is about.
0:55:10 > 0:55:13What we have with kids and she is showing that,
0:55:13 > 0:55:17even if things are not good, we can still go forward.
0:55:17 > 0:55:21So, for me, for her to be nominated is one of the best...
0:55:21 > 0:55:24I mean, the best thing that has happened to her in a long time.
0:55:25 > 0:55:29And Christine's athletics career is far, far from over.
0:55:33 > 0:55:36- Going to where you know you can go is Rio in 2016.- Yeah.
0:55:36 > 0:55:39That's the next big Olympics. Are you going to give it another shot?
0:55:39 > 0:55:41- Yeah, I think so.- Regain your gold?
0:55:41 > 0:55:47Yeah, I mean, I've always said Rio hinges on being fit and healthy.
0:55:47 > 0:55:52I think I'm allowed to kind of make those choices now.
0:55:52 > 0:55:55I think before it'd be like, "Yes, a definite," but, yeah, I think
0:55:55 > 0:55:57if everything goes well and I'm fit.
0:55:57 > 0:55:58As I stand now I feel good
0:55:58 > 0:56:01but who knows what's going to happen in two years?
0:56:01 > 0:56:04- You'll be 32?- Yes, I'll be 32 so...
0:56:04 > 0:56:07- In your prime? - Yeah, well that's what they say.
0:56:07 > 0:56:10I thought 28 was my prime or 29,
0:56:10 > 0:56:14but I think a lot of it is mental maturity as well, knowing what you
0:56:14 > 0:56:17can do and being able to apply what you know you can do.
0:56:20 > 0:56:24Christine takes her running seriously and even at Christmas
0:56:24 > 0:56:26she is officially in training
0:56:26 > 0:56:29which means that while we're tucking into the turkey,
0:56:29 > 0:56:32this will just be another day at the office.
0:56:32 > 0:56:35Where will you be? What's the routine of Christmas Day?
0:56:35 > 0:56:39It depends on what day of the week Christmas falls.
0:56:39 > 0:56:42I'll try and get a run in first thing in the morning.
0:56:42 > 0:56:44- How far do you run? - How far do I run?
0:56:44 > 0:56:47It'll be a 20-minute run but it'll be a good run.
0:56:47 > 0:56:49I'll be tired after it.
0:56:49 > 0:56:52Then I probably will go to church with the kids.
0:56:54 > 0:56:57I think her family is very important to her.
0:56:57 > 0:57:02She took her younger brothers and sisters to America the other week.
0:57:02 > 0:57:06They are very, very important to her and I think she'll enjoy the fact
0:57:06 > 0:57:09that she's spending Christmas with her family.
0:57:09 > 0:57:11I typically wake up late on Christmas.
0:57:11 > 0:57:14I know, our family's weird.
0:57:14 > 0:57:17I think cos they go to bed too late cos they're excited
0:57:17 > 0:57:21and they wake up late so possibly go to church on my own without them.
0:57:21 > 0:57:23I don't wait for them because the older they get,
0:57:23 > 0:57:26the more lazy they get in the mornings
0:57:26 > 0:57:29and then, yeah, I'll be at the house.
0:57:30 > 0:57:35Probably put my presents under the tree
0:57:35 > 0:57:37so they have to wait for me to bring my presents
0:57:37 > 0:57:39before they open their presents.
0:57:39 > 0:57:42- Well, I wish you a very happy Christmas, Christine.- Thank you.
0:57:42 > 0:57:45And also, can't wait for Rio.
0:57:45 > 0:57:47Yeah, Rio will be good. Thank you.
0:57:47 > 0:57:49- Good luck.- Thank you very much. - Thank you.
0:57:53 > 0:57:57Christine Ohuruogu, a woman full of confidence yet very
0:57:57 > 0:58:01self-effacing, and what she has gone through is remarkable.
0:58:03 > 0:58:07I think it is her faith in God and her faith in herself
0:58:07 > 0:58:11that's carried her through the ups and downs of an extraordinary career
0:58:11 > 0:58:15and also I think, from my belief, she was very honest as well.
0:58:15 > 0:58:17We haven't heard the last of Christine Ohuruogu,
0:58:17 > 0:58:22so whatever it is that's next in her plan, watch this space!
0:58:22 > 0:58:25MUSIC: "Keep On Movin'" by Soul II Soul
0:58:25 > 0:58:27# Keep on movin'
0:58:30 > 0:58:32# Keep on movin'
0:58:32 > 0:58:35# Keep on movin' don't stop, no
0:58:35 > 0:58:37# Keep on movin'
0:58:37 > 0:58:38# Yes
0:58:38 > 0:58:40# Keep on movin'
0:58:40 > 0:58:42# Keep on movin' don't stop, no. #