Many top athletes plan their pregnancies to coincide with big events like the Paralympics or Olympics, but Greenham said she and her partner, Christopher Greenham, chose to give birth now, even though they knew they might be quite advanced in the pregnancy by the time they reached Paris. Times Radio.
“Frankly, I wasn’t going to stop having a family because of the Olympics. I believe we should be able to have both,” she said.
Starting a family is a big deal: The 31-year-old already has one son, Christian, who was born in October. 2022She was unwell throughout her pregnancy, was on bed rest until the 16th week, and gave birth prematurely at 28 weeks. AthleticPharmaceuticals delay Christian was born nine weeks early but spent an additional 10 days in an incubator.
She’d also had three miscarriages. “We didn’t even know if we’d ever be able to conceive again. We might never be able to conceive again,” she said. Athletic“Getting pregnant is not as easy as people think it is. It’s not that simple.”
She’s been lucky to stay healthy to this stage and continue competing at a high level, thanks in part to the support of British Archery and her coach, Charlotte Burgess, a former Olympic archer and mother herself. “I think it’s a milestone in how far we’ve come as a country to be able to support someone and not say, ‘You shouldn’t be doing this’ – for a woman, it’s incredible,” Greenham said. BBC Sports.
In addition to kicking practice, Greenham’s training has undergone some other changes, and she said she often needs to take a nap midway through a 12-hour workout. Newsweek.
He also told BBC Sport that he bought a quiver extension belt because his quiver no longer fit around his waist, and that it meant he had to lower his quiver, changing the way he lifted and held his bow. Athletic.
But despite the modifications, she is confident in her skills and coming into the Olympics prepared for all possibilities. “My team joked a few times that my water might break on the podium,” she said. AthleticOr maybe her baby kicks and she loses her gold medal, but she told Newsweek, “Even if I don’t bring home the medal, I’ll still get a great prize at the end anyway.”
And whatever the outcome, she told BBC Sport, it would have been worth it to pursue both dreams: “I’ve loved every moment of having a career and I’ve loved every moment of being a mother, so why do I have to do it separately?”
SELF is your go-to source for all things Paralympic – check out our coverage of the Paris Games here.
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