{"id":8293,"date":"2021-05-07T23:15:14","date_gmt":"2021-05-07T23:15:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sportsnewsforyou.com\/?p=8293"},"modified":"2021-05-07T23:15:14","modified_gmt":"2021-05-07T23:15:14","slug":"from-cross-country-to-paratri-via-boxing-we-speak-to-britains-andy-lewis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/?p=8293","title":{"rendered":"From cross-country to paratri, via boxing\u2026 We speak to Britain\u2019s Andy Lewis"},"content":{"rendered":"

Andy Lewis, 32, started his tri career just last year as a member of Triathlon England\u2019s talent squad before graduating into the GB paratriathlon squad. <\/strong><\/p>\n

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A former cross country runner for Gloucestershire and a boxing coach for three years, Andy recently won bronze in the PT2 category (see classifications below)\u00a0 at the Madrid ITU World Paratriathlon Event.\u00a0<\/p>\n

How does the set-up in Loughborough work with you?\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

I currently attend Loughbourgh five days a week and it works quite well. It\u2019s great to be around the team and have access to the coaches and experts to ensure I get what I need.<\/p>\n

How important is the Hub to you?\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s so important to have this facility. For me, I\u2019m very motivated but I find training at the hub pushes me even further.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

What would qualifying for the Paralympics mean to you?\u00a0<\/p>\n

I, along with many others, have made massive sacrifices \u2013 giving up my job, leaving my home and family (wife and two children) at home, so qualifying would mean the world to us.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a hard hill to climb and I\u2019m currently at the bottom making my way through the trees. We have to remember that I only started triathlon one year ago so getting points and on starts lists now is the most important thing for me.<\/p>\n

With no precedent for tri in the Paralympics, how are you approaching this huge race target?<\/p>\n

>>> Three more paratriathlon medal events for Rio 2016<\/p>\n

Taking every day one step at a time, really. I don\u2019t know what to expect to be honest, some of the guys have been to the Paralympics before but for me it\u2019s such a big thing. I just can\u2019t focus on it right now as there are so many things that need resolving first.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s your main goal this year?<\/p>\n

For me it will be to improve all aspects of my performance taking each one very seriously. My main goal this year is to qualify for the Worlds and Europeans, but the PT2 cat is so new that we\u2019re currently chasing points to make this happen. We (me and Ryan Taylor) can only do our best and hope that we get GB points.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Do you have a nemesis in your category?<\/p>\n

For me, every competitor deserves respect to be competing at that level with a disability. But when the horn goes on race day, it\u2019s just me, my bike and my blade.<\/p>\n

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\nWhat would you say are your biggest strengths and weaknesses in paratri?<\/p>\n

I\u2019m very focused on what I want. I\u2019m a big team player but my strengths lie in my planning and motivation. I\u2019ve made massive gains in the swim.<\/p>\n

My weakness is possibly worrying about things I can\u2019t control. However with the support of Steve Casson my coach I can refocus my energy very quickly.<\/p>\n

How much does your disability affect you in training?<\/p>\n

Due to me using my good leg a lot it becomes very tired and has to be managed very carefully. But I also suffer quite badly with sores on my stumps.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t get funding or sponsorship for my prosthetics so when this happens I need to spend a lot of time getting it right.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

How do you balance family, work and training?\u00a0<\/p>\n

This is the hardest thing for me to manage, as I find leaving my family at times of need really difficult. My wife has been so strong with me but trying to explain to a one-year-old that daddy has to go away is hard.<\/p>\n

I gave up my job to become a full-time athlete (something I never thought I could say), so my family know why I\u2019m doing it. But as a dad, sometimes I wish I could do normal dad things, it\u2019s just hard to fit it all in.<\/p>\n

Who or what inspires you most on a bad training day?<\/p>\n

Hard one that. I would say when I\u2019m in Loughbourgh and I\u2019m not having a bad day, Joe Townsend. We get along really well and he always makes me laugh.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

But when I\u2019m at home it\u2019s my wife and kids. Coming home after a bad day and seeing their faces always makes me smile. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Paralympic category classifications\n<\/p><\/div>\n

PT1<\/strong> Wheelchair users. Athletes use a recumbent handcycle on the bike course and a racing wheelchair on the run segment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

PT2<\/strong> Athletes with comparable activity limitation and an impairment of, but not limited to, limb deficiency, hypertonia, ataxia and\/or athethosis, impaired muscle power or range of movement. In both bike and run segments, amputee athletes may use approved prosthesis or other supportive devices.<\/p>\n

PT4<\/strong> As above but with less severe impairment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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PT5<\/strong> Total or partial visual impairment, competes with a guide.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Andy Lewis, 32, started his tri career just last year as a member of Triathlon England\u2019s talent squad before graduating into the GB paratriathlon squad. Advertisement A former cross country runner for Gloucestershire and a boxing coach for three years, Andy recently won bronze in the PT2 category (see classifications below)\u00a0 at the Madrid ITU…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8293","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8293","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8293"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8293\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8293"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8293"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8293"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}