Podcast #67: Dan Pembroke's Paralympic and world record glory
"It's phenomenal, I can't believe it," says Great Britain's Dan Pembroke after winning his second Paralympic F13 javelin title in Paris, obliterating the world record in the process.
Pembroke, 33, was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa as a child, which led to the deterioration of his eyesight. Growing up, his father encouraged him to pursue throwing the javelin, which led to Dan competing at the 2010 World Athletics Under-20 Championships.
In 2019, he was back throwing a javelin and UK Athletics' Paula Dunn suggested he should check if he was eligible to be a classified para athlete. Dan was told that he had 10% of his vision remaining, meaning he could be classified as F13, a category for athletes with a moderate visual impairment.
Hamstring and calf injuries interrupted Pembroke's season this year, lowering his expectations, but the atmosphere on the night helped deliver a truly memorable performance that will go down in Paralympic history.
"You are in a competition like that with so many people getting behind you - 65,000 people in the stadium,
"It left my hand so clean. I knew it was a big through because of what the audience reaction was."
"The noise in that stadium is phenomenal, it's something I'll never forget."
Pembroke is now part of a medical trial that he hopes will stabilise his eyesight for the future, but he remains grateful for the life journey that he has been on.
"It's made this moment feel absolutely incredible through the hard times I've been through."
The episode can be listened to in full on Spotify, as well as Soundcloud and Apple Podcasts.