Episode 12 Inspire: The Olympic Journey

Glasgow, a city that's had its fair share of ups and downs.

It is a place divided and united by sport.

And in just a few short weeks, some of the best athletes on the planet

are going to be welcomed here.

Memories will be made, heroes created.

Sporting excellence rewarded.

The clock is ticking down, the Commonwealth Games is almost

upon us.

Loughborough University is a home from home for many

of the sportsmen and women we will see in Glasgow this summer

at the Commonwealth Games.

Badminton players, athletes and swimmers all use the world-class

facilities here, a special place with a special link to what will

hopefully be a very special Games.

In today's programme, we will meet a few faces who are

hoping to make an impact in just over three weeks? time.

Matthew Pinsent is in South Africa to meet someone who could become one

of the real stars of the summer, with a little help from his dad.

Welsh triathlete Helen Jenkins tells Helen Skelton about her long

road to recovery after a difficult 18 months on the sidelines.

Injury cruelly ended England netball captain Pamela Cookey's Commonwealth

dream.

We are in Bath with her as the team come to terms with the

loss of their inspirational leader.

And if you have been inspired to try a new sport like swimming,

netball or triathlon, head to our website for more details on how

to get involved in your area.

For most of us, London 2012 is now a distant if fond memory, but for

one young swimmer it was the moment he became a global star, thanks

in part to his enthusiastic father.

Beating Michael Phelps to win Olympic gold was a lifelong

ambition for Chad Le Clos.

They're coming back hard, but Michael Phelps, I think,

is going to win.

Is he going to create history by winning this race

for the third time in a row?

Chad Le Clos is pushing him.

He gets the touch and Chad Le Clos is Olympic champion

in the men's 200 metres butterfly.

He is the most down-to-earth, beautiful boy you will ever meet

in your life.

Now he is setting himself some new targets.

Matthew Pinsent travelled to Durban to spend some time with him and

of course the family.

Good to see you again.

Welcome to South Africa.

My pool.

It is not what I expected.

Lots of people get a shock, but this is home for us.

You always trained here, this is where you started?

Yes, it has been about 14 years.

The same lane.

That end lane over there.

This is where your dreams are made.

Yes.

All the hard work was done here.

Yes.

How is life treating you?

Good.

It has been heavy this year because of all

the media engagements, especially leading up to the Commonwealth.

We have just come off the national champs.

Now you have big plans for Glasgow?

Yes, hopefully it is going to be another big event for me.

What is your session tonight?

Tonight it is not so bad, I have only got back

into training after the nationals.

It should be about 5.5 kilometres.

Not so heavy.

Only about an hour and a half.

I do not want to stop you, you carry on and we will catch up afterwards.

Great.

Cool.

Any sports squad will be similar.

It reminds me of a rowing squad in that you have the experienced,

accomplished medal-winning group and there will be a young gun group.

The interaction between them is part of that.

It just keeps you sharp.

For Chad, this keeps him fresh and hungry.

He has got to hold off all these guys, all of whom are looking to

score little victories against him in a morning or evening session.

When you look at him here in his training environment, what does he

do differently to the other swimmers that means he's Olympic champion?

Those kind of things, I am sure you will know,

you cannot make those things, certain athletes are born with it.

That's what gives them the edge.

That is what I believe gives them the edge on other athletes.

Lots of people can work really hard and

have the work ethic, but I believe he has a killer instinct to win.

He likes to win and race.

He does not shy away from big competition and he gets on with it.

He loves to win.

How many events are you going to do in Glasgow?

At this stage, we're looking at six or seven.

What is Thorpe's record at the Commonwealths in one meet?

I think it is five.

Is that important for him, he has got to set goals for himself?

For me as a coach, to motivate him on certain things, I have to set

those kind of goals, something different, something that other

people are not really looking at.

One of the things you notice when you watch Chad train is that

every time he is under water he is loads quicker than any

of the people he trains against.

How was that?

That was good.

This is my first week back from the break after the nationals.

We are still getting into the way of things.

It is not as far as we usually go, but it was hard, I guess.

A few of the guys were pushing you harder than normal.

Yes, with the cameras, everyone wants to be ahead,

it was a competitive session.

We are now following Chad back to his place.

Bert is laying on a barbecue, or a ?braai? as it is known here.

-- "braai". This is the family house.

Yes, this is it.

The Olympic replicas on the wall there.

Those are replicas, right?

Yes.

This is my brother.

He was in Ireland last year for an age-group championship.

It is weird.

He is in the yellow cap.

He is slightly looking at the guy next to him.

If you look there, that is me looking Phelps

in the last 20 metres.

Just when I passed him.

What was the margin between you when it came to the line?

Five one-hundredths of a second.

You cannot even catch that.

A win is a win.

100%.

This is all new, even downstairs.

The bar here.

Unbelievable.

You have to say it the right way, unbelievable.

Exactly, when you say, you have to pay my dad.

How are you?

Hello.

Nice to meet you.

Thank God you got here safely.

It was good.

That is a great fire.

Does this happen a lot?

It does.

We always have the family over at least once a week.

Dad is always cooking.

It is my job.

This is special.

He is a chef.

He is a housewife.

How have you been since the peak of London and all the excitement?

You know, you say how have I been, but life has changed completely.

Whenever I go, people recognise me thanks to

Clare Balding from the BBC.

Look at him, look at him.

He is crying like me.

I love you.

Every time I see my son, I?m like this.

This is live.

You're fine.

You were here at the most perfect moment in

your son's life and it sounds like the most perfect moment of yours.

Unbelievable, unbelievable.

Thanks, Great Britain.

You know, you?re a gold medallist.

If one day you are lucky enough to have a son that is a gold medallist,

it is unbelievable.

I know it is a cliche.

It was so heartfelt, but that is how you are.

It was not an act, you had no time to prepare anything,

it was just you.

No one is prepared for that, I am telling you.

No one, no one.

Sometimes I watch the replay and I still scream and shout.

It sort of defied explanation.

A gold medal performance, especially the performance that you

put in to beat Phelps, your first gold medal, to topple

a legend as he is, as he was.

Chad Le Clos has a chance, the Commonwealth champion.

At that time, it was my perfect race, definitely.

I still pinch myself, looking back at race.

I just remember the last 50 was like a movie. It felt like everything was

going in slow motion.

When I came down the stretch in the last 20 metres, I couldn?t

hear anything, the crowd.

I could hear myself talking to myself.

Basically I was swimming right up until the Saturday,

so I had not seen my parents until the end of the 100 fly final.

I did not know where my dad was until Saturday night.

That is when I found out.

It was crazy.

We were just like Batman and Robin.

Fatman and Robin.

Fatman and Bobbin.

It is only fitting that the world can see my dad for what he is.

The way that he has helped me over the years.

What he has done for me and my brothers and my sister over

the years is incredible.

That is why the world loves him.

You will make me cry now, I can tell you.

Glasgow is on the agenda for you, you're coming to Scotland?

We have already booked, we booked before him.

He had to qualify.

After spending some time with Chad and his dad,

it is clear how important family is to this impressive young man.

He has got his feet firmly on the ground.

I think it is very important to have the downtime that we have.

Swimmers, we do not get much.

Recharge the battery.

It is important to get away from the swimming pool.

If I was always talking about swimming, it would drive you crazy.

I love what I do.

I love racing on the big stage.

Nobody loves waking up at five in the morning and jumping into a cold

pool in winter, but it is something that has to be done in order to

achieve what I want to achieve.

The Commonwealth is every four years.

It is still a lot of prestige, especially in South Africa.

I am really excited.

That is where it all began for me four years ago, Delhi.

For me to go there and defend two titles and hopefully

add more to that, it would be right up there with the Olympics.

I will have a lot more support than I did in London,

a lot more family are coming.

I think I will have more fans than I did before then,

so it will be awesome to hopefully deliver more golds for them.

For Chad, there is new ambition, and who would bet against him

breaking Ian Thorpe's record of six Commonwealth gold medals?

His dream is very much alive, but for England netball captain

Pamela Cookey, injury has cruelly taken away her chance of going

for gold in Glasgow after two Commonwealth bronze medals.

It has been an emotional few months for this inspirational leader

since she ruptured her Achilles at the end of April.

We went with her to the University of Bath as she met her team-mates

for the first time since the injury which cruelly ended

her Commonwealth journey.

I have my moments when I just think, life is not fair.

Why?

This was going to be an awesome year,

our squad was looking so good and we were so prepped and ready for it.

Why now?

Why did it happen?

But I have just got to be positive otherwise I cannot come back.

If I go in to myself and let it get on top of me,

it is not good for anyone.

Seeing the girls today, it is crazy how much joy it brings me.

I feel like I'm smiling all the time.

Just knowing that they are still going strong,

and there are some amazing girls in our squad, there is so much talent.

Other leaders as well, it makes my job easy.

They step up as well.

Like Sara Bayman.

I call her my general.

Hey, Sara.

Hey, pal.

How is it going?

Good.

Obviously I am not going to be with you guys.

I'm sorry.

But you guys have been awesome.

You as my VC...

You have dropped me right in it.

There is a squad of 18 at the moment.

We have got to get it down to 12.

It was really intense today.

Is it because everyone is vying for those positions?

I think so.

It is ramping up.

Everyone is trying to push on further and prove

their point for selection.

This will be the tightest selection we have had in a long time.

I am excited to see what they can do going into the Commonwealth Games.

I think they are a strong force to be reckoned with

and people should fear them.

I am also gutted I am not going to be part of it.

When it first happened on court, I thought someone had kicked me.

I thought, I have just been hit, I will get some ice on it and I

will be good to go.

The physio had a look at it.

She said, I think you have snapped you Achilles.

We got through the game and we got over to

the hospital where they confirmed that I had snapped my Achilles.

The reaction has been a bit crazy, a whirlwind.

I have had so much support.

Love you, babe.

People wishing me goodwill messages and get back soon.

And that is when you think, actually, I am kind of important,

if that makes sense.

I think it would not do the team's feelings for you justice

or your leadership skills justice to say that it has been

an easy thing for us to deal with.

It has not.

It is difficult and I think a true leader is missed, and you are

missed, and you should know that.

However, I think the way that we intend to deal with that is that

everybody has to pull their weight.

I think it is easy for a team, and especially for us

as individuals, to sit back and to allow your leadership skills and

your experience, and your awesome netballing abilities to take over.

We're not going to be that England team.

For now, until you come back, then we will let you do everything again.

And we're not going to do that for now until we come back.

You're one of the best I have played under.

We will miss you, obviously, this year, as well.

You are one of my close friends.

I think that as a team, we have a massive opportunity now.

That is your chance, girl, if you want that, you go and take it.

We have been players that we do not need our hands to be held,

so when you step on the court, it is about you doing your job

and making it work and having a bit of a high five with the captain.

We are a team and we do stay in our bubble.

We do not have the Olympics.

We put everything into the Commonwealth Games.

This year in Glasgow, everyone is so pumped and excited.

I am so excited.

It is the best netball memory I have, ever.

It is awesome.

You are part of a bigger team, it is so good.

We are always really excited about meeting everyone, we're like, hello,

and we do not even know them.

Oh, look, Jessica Ennis!

It is really good to be part of Team England.

There is definitely a team feel about it because you all

get the same kit, you are in the same area in the athletes village

and you get to see them at mealtimes as well as celebrity spotting

for people like Usain Bolt.

You can go into the village and put on five kilos by spending

all of your time in the food hall.

Or be distracted by other very attractive athletes.

We have also looked at the point that we go to the Commonwealth Games

to get that buzz, it's like the excitement of kids in a sweet shop.

I know more than anyone how professional these girls are

and when it comes to business, you step out there.

You just get it done when it comes to it.

I think that this kind of typical of the squad.

We have a lot of fun.

And then we cross on to that court and it is like, bang.

To be part of such a big international global event

and the fact that it is almost on home soil, no jet lag.

Come on over to us, it is great.

It is actually quite nice, just focusing

on the netball side of things.

It will just be a fantastic experience for everyone.

You'll be up there supporting us.

Part of the experience as well.

I just want to get out there and play.

It is nice just to be able to watch the girls and support them.

I have not seen any netball since I had my injury

so that has helped a little bit.

I am going to want to be on the court.

But it will be difficult.

I am not going to lie to you but I want to be there to be able to

support the team.

I want to be able to celebrate with them because I know that they are

going to be successful and the little bits are going to shine

through, whatever I am feeling, I just need to get on with it.

For some athletes, the timing of injuries can be so cruel.

Years of hard training and then your dreams are taken away,

just like that.

For triathlete Helen Jenkins the last few seasons have been

so hard watching from the sidelines, but there is finally

light at the end of the tunnel.

After a fifth placed finish in London she spent the season

trying to get over several injuries, but with Glasgow

fast approaching she is making a comeback at just the right time.

Helen Skelton went to meet her at home in Bridgend.

How are you?

Good. Still a little niggle when training.

When you say you have got niggles, are you always managing something?

You just have got to keep on top of it all the time,

having the treatment which keeps everything under control.

Triathlon is such a demanding sport because you are doing it for hours.

Pretty much.

As Helen says, the volumes of work,

you know what you have to do to get through.

You're constantly second-guessing what might happen or

while the treatment is ongoing.

Helen would get treated twice a week. Minimum.

You had the surgery after the Olympics.

Was that a relief because there was something ongoing, that you

could not put your finger on.

I had a knee problem about three months before the games

that was very painful.

When it first happened. I was struggling to swim, really.

London was such a big goal.

For two years, it would be the race on those mornings that I did not

want to go training, it was the race that I, that got me out of bed.

And I was injured.

And then I felt lost, what am I aiming for?

What am I doing?

The Olympic build up was the worst period of her life.

How she got through, I don't know.

With support from the staff, from the British Triathlon Federation.

It was not fun.

COMMENTATOR: Huge crowds at Hyde Park.

An enormous amount of noise.

Helen Jenkins will take some encouragement

from the fact that thousands have come out to watch her compete.

How much pain where you in during the Olympics?

During the race, I was fine, you don't think about it then.

You look like you gave it your all.

I did give it everything.

I just could not hang on in there for the last part of the run.

This has been the hardest ten weeks of my career.

Having the injury, it has just been really hard to get

to the start line.

And actually I am amazed that I was in contention for that long.

I have not able to get all of my running in.

She cried herself to sleep for days on end and that was heartbreaking

for me to see her do that, and to see her dream rapidly fading away.

It was not easy.

Why didn't you stop competing?

We spoke about it. She was never not going to do it.

At one point we had been for a run and she could not do it,

she was in pain.

I said, do you want to keep doing this, to keep pushing?

There was never a choice not to do it, it is either

try and fail, or fail and give up.

After the Olympics, she was fifth, then you know she was injured.

Where did you start?

We thought it was a knee issue. We took a good holiday.

We came back, she had her surgery on her back.

Since then, it has just been a gradual build.

It is comforting that she has gone out and done it because of the

psychological blow of the Olympics, the physical blow of all of the

injuries and surgery, yet she has come back and not only has she gone

back but in her first three races, she has done very, very well.

It has been some time since we watched you race, and has got to be

a great feeling to be coming in after being away for a while.

We did not expect her to do well in the first race.

She has trained average, at best.

Now she is starting to train well, in the last four or five weeks.

The adversity is what makes you stronger.

We are hopeful that she will be better now.

How does it feel to be back training hard and competing?

It such a good feeling.

It is hard to put into words.

What a huge sign that shows that the rest of the athletes of she can

get back to top level racing and get onto the podium so quickly.

I have got a good chance of doing well at the Commonwealth Games.

It has come into focus.

And it is for Wales, as well, you get to be on a Welsh team,

which you do not have a chance to do very often.

I am supported by Wales, I come here twice a week.

You could compete for Scotland.

I was born in Scotland.

My father was in the RAF.

When I go to Scotland people say, you are Scottish, aren't you?

And I say, I have only ever lived in Wales.

Can you get excited about the Commonwealth Games?

It was only after she came home that I thought I could do well.

Before that I had not given myself a thought.

We didn't know if she could make it.

Now she can start thinking about it and now she can think she

can do well.

Do you ever look at her, because you are her coach and her husband.

Sometimes you must want to say, let's just go and have a coffee

and take your away from all of this.

I don't know what we would do if we did that.

This has been our lives for so long.

I was in triathlon before I met Helen,

and now she does it, and we would be lost without the constant training

and the emotion that comes with it.

At a certain point we thought we were just walk away from this.

And after the Olympic games, we thought about it.

We talked about Helen Jenkins and confidence.

If that is not confidence I don't know what is.

She has gone straight to the head of that field.

There is no doubt that this could be an exciting chapter for Helen

and you, things could go great, but whatever happens, you must we very

proud of what she has achieved.

At the Olympics I was proud of her.

To do what she did, I'm not sure anybody else could have done that,

that was remarkable character.

It is easy to do well when everything is going well,

but harder, when everything is going wrong.

Are you nervous, given that you know what is going on?

I'm not nervous. Helen is in good shape at the moment.

You have been through it all. You know what is going on.

We have been at this now, four for five years.

You always striving to make Helen a more robust athlete

so that she can tolerate these things and get through them safely.

When you do get these little niggles, you get through them.

I did not realise I would get back to racing at this time last year.

Just to be able to go for a run and it does not hurt.

"It does not hurt today. That is pretty cool."

You talk about your racing, talking about

the results you have had so far.

You always say, "we", like it is a team effort.

I would not be doing what I am doing without Mark.

I know that he's going to make sure that my bike is working fine,

that everything is working smoothly, he just does that for me and I feel

guilty about it sometimes I do not do enough, he just looks after me.

You are a modern man.

Ever fall out?

I am grumpy every Saturday morning.

You're used to me not talking on a Saturday morning.

It is definitely my job to walk the dog on Saturday mornings.

One of the things I miss is just not being outside.

We made a conscious effort, we have the van,

we come down to the beach, we go for a little swim, we have a barbecue.

Just a feeling of being outside.

You just have to work out the things that keep you sane.

What does the short-term future hold for the Jenkins partnership

To Rio de Janeiro.

We'll take it race by race and year by year, then a bit of surf in the

summer, some barbecues on the beach.

With Barney.

Barney abbani, he about 12 now.

Just don't you go anywhere, you selfish dog, you!

Timing can be such a huge part of athlete's career.

It was a life long ambition for proud family and friends.

Now, Chad has got new goals to aim for.

Helen Jenkins has found that this at just the right time

after the restriction of serious injury, the Commonwealth

Games are a chance to prove that she is the best in the world.

And for Pamela Cookey, time ran out.

Injury ended a long-held ambition.

She will be back.

That is it for the show today.

If you have been inspired by anything you have seen,

you can visit the website for more details.

Just 24 days to go until the start of the Commonwealth games

in Glasgow, and it promises to be a cracking summer of sport.

A Commonwealth gold medallist.

He is going to get there.

Ian Thorpe is getting a standing ovation from this crowd.

He never faltered or slowed up, that was magnificent.

Here comes the challenge from Meares.

It was so close.

# This is a man's world