There comes a time in every sportsperson’s career when retiring feels like the right choice.
But it seems, if you’re a former member of Team GB, there’s every chance you might just change your mind.
Take middle-distance runner Georgia Bell for example.
She went to the US on a track scholarship but when she wasn’t getting any faster, decided to quit after graduating and get a job.
“I honestly never thought I’d ever put on spikes again, but then COVID came around, and all you could do was exercise,” she said.
“I started doing more training. Started getting into Parkrun. I got in contact with my old coach, and it’s just been consistency over the last few years, and that led me to make the British team.”
It was clearly the right choice, storming towards the finish line to win bronze in the 1500m in Paris.
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It does mean Bell, 30, might need to update her LinkedIn profile, where she describes herself as “an ambitious and hard-working cyber security enthusiast / running nerd”.
Now she’s a nerd with an Olympic medal.
“I couldn’t be happier with where I am right now, and just felt very lucky and grateful to have a second shot at running,” she said.
But there are plenty of similar stories.
Tom Daley, 30, said he would be stepping down from the diving platform after winning gold in Tokyo in 2021 only to return this year to take silver… his fifth Olympic medal.
Triple Olympic champion swimmer Adam Peaty, 29, also returned to the pool to win silver in the 100m breaststroke following a break from the sport after struggling with his mental health.
Then there’s two-time Olympic champion Helen Glover, 38.
The rower has retired not once but twice.
But the mum of three was back in Paris to win silver, having kept herself super-fit, saying she’s in the best shape of her life.
“I did a marathon and a half Ironman and all these things were so different to rowing, but I didn’t actually go on a boat for years after Rio,” she said.
“I think also having kids, the way we lead our life with that, we’re out paddleboarding, we’re out being active… so when it meant kind of coming back into rowing, I had enough fitness to get there.”
And there’s the joy too of being able to share that success with her children.
“Getting a medal in front of my kids was probably the biggest motivation for me.”
Then, of course, there’s Andy Macdonald, the Team GB skateboarder who at 51 is proof you’re never too old to start your Olympic journey.
He won the hearts of spectators if not any medals, describing the whole experience as “the most enjoyable and fun thing” ever.
The idea that you should never say never is one Georgia Bell firmly agrees with.
“If anyone wants to go back to something that they love, I would definitely recommend it.
“It’s never too late.”
