My best and worst moments with Germany’s Vanessa Low

Vanessa Low leapt in to the history books in 2015 smashing the women's long jump T42 world record twice on her way to winning world gold with a best of 5.79m. That success did not necessarily come easily for the German – in this week’s ‘Best & Worst Moments’ the 25-year-old describes just how her persistence paid off.

My best moment

My best moment was undoubtedly at the 2015 World Championships, winning gold in the long jump. Last year was my seventh year of track and field in the Paralympic world, and this was my first gold medal at a World Championships.

All together it was an amazing competition, breaking the world record and having an exciting battle with Martina Caironi. Success is the best when you have to work hard for something for such a long time. I had a tough couple of years and this was an amazing reward and confidence boost ahead of the Rio Games this year.

My worst moment

My worst moment so far was my World Championship long jump competition in New Zealand in 2011. Physically I had everything that it took to win gold; mentally I did not.

I ended up having a bunch failures and only got two terrible attempts on the board, finishing fourth. This was an eye-opener for me - showing how important mental strength and mental preparation, attitude and confidence is in the competition and training world.

This day left a big crack in my confidence on the track and it took me two years to gain back confidence with the help of my coach Roderick in his cruel but effective ways. Ahead of New Zealand, competition for me was about winning. Today it’s about enjoying my sports.

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