Jomni relishing rest of European Championships after medal-laden start in Berlin
The year-long wait for a major competition is over for Mo Jomni after returning to the World Para Athletics European Championships in style in Berlin.
The past 12 months have featured more downs than ups but the Richmond wheelchair racer put all that behind him on Tuesday, a T53 200m bronze medal his reward.
Just putting on the Great Britain vest was a relief in itself for the sprinter, despite arriving at the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark with six European medals already behind him.
Even with those honours this felt like a new beginning for Jomni, one he is looking to take one event at a time if he is to retake his place at the top.
“I am glad to be back after a year off,” he said. “It was a bit of a slow start but I managed to snatch a bronze.
“It’s a good warm up and I am just happy to be back representing Great Britain and I can’t wait to relax now because I was sweating about the race to be honest.
“I am really happy with that bronze, it is a good come ack. I felt a bit left out last year and I am glad that Paula [Dunn, British head coach] and British Athletics and the National Lottery gave me another chance to come back and have faith in me, it is brilliant, brilliant, brilliant.
“The track was very slow and I’m not used to that. It is hard to get acceleration going but it is easy for me to hold that power on and just go forward.”
Jomni is already a veteran of a Paralympic Games at Rio 2016 but pressing the reset button on his approach means an appearance at Tokyo 2020 is not a foregone conclusion.
But whatever happens from hereon in, the 29-year-old will leave Berlin with more confidence than what he came with.
A quick turnaround now ensues with the T53 400m to come on Wednesday, with the Londoner already itching to see what comes next.
“I just had to do it out there. I can’t wait for the World Championships next year,” added Jomni, who had spinal fixation as a child after being hit by two vehicles and spending six months in a coma.
“I have done the Europeans so many times, I still enjoy it and it is always great for mindset for the worlds and for Tokyo 2020.
“For me it is a blessing in disguise to start back with the Europeans because when I first started, I started with the Europeans, so it is kind of a good luck thing.”
British Athletics works alongside UK Sport and the National Lottery to support the delivery of success at the world’s most significant sporting events, principally the Olympic and Paralympic Games. They do this via the funded initiative, the World Class Programme, one part of the British Athletics pathway.
