Sophie Capewell broke down in tears as she paid tribute to her late father in the aftermath of Team GBâs victory in an historic womenâs team sprint final at the Paris Olympics.
New Zealandâs trio started the stronger of the two teams before Britain fought back to set an astonishing time of 45.186 seconds in the velodrome, their third world record in as many rides.
The win secured Britainâs first ever medal in the womenâs version of the event, with Katy Marchant, Emma Finucane and Capewellâs triumph taking Team GBâs overall haul to 11 gold medals at this summerâs Games.
Speaking to BBC Sport shortly after the final, an emotional Capewell could not hold back the tears as she bemoaned the absence of her father Nigel, who died in 2021.
âThe support, the journey to get here, for everyone has been up and down,â Capewell said.
âIâve had my own personal battles and I wish my dad was up there in the stands watching it. He would be super proud of me.
âIt didnât feel real all day. We did every ride and it was like, âOh⌠faster, oh⌠faster again! Oh⌠weâre top of the time sheets!â, but we stuck to our processes.â
Capewellâs team-mate, Finucane, meanwhile, said it was a âdream come trueâ to win gold on the biggest stage.
âHonestly weâve been working really hard on this and you will hear this a lot from us but the process is really key.
âWe nailed that final and I believed in us before we went up to do it but to execute lap one, lap two and lap three pretty much perfectly and then to cross the line first, I was like âno wayâ.
âItâs just a dream come true and to have these two by my side is unreal.â
In the BBC Sport studio, Team GB legend Dame Laura Kenny congratulated Capewell on coming through such a tough few years to achieve such extraordinary success.
âSheâs on the podium with two of her closest friends. Sheâs been through so many ups and down over the last few years,â Kenny told Gabby Logan.
âIt must be so difficult seeing everyone celebrating with their family knowing that your dad isnât there so thatâs obviously why sheâs so upset.
âFor them now, they look absolutely delighted.â
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