Jessica Lewis: ‘Great Feeling’ To Start Season
After recording first and second place finishes at the Desert Challenge in Arizona, Bermuda’s Jessica Lewis said it’s “always such a great feeling to get back on the track and race for the first time in a new season.”
In a recent post on her blog, Ms Lewis said, “The first race of the 2016 racing season took place last weekend in Arizona where it was a very mild 104 degrees!
“The competition is called Desert Challenge and is one that I have been going to every year, besides one, since I started competing in 2010. It is also a special competition for me as it is where I qualified for the 200m race for the London 2012 Paralympic Games in 2012!
Podcast interview with Jessica Lewis:
“It is always such a great feeling to get back on the track and race for the first time in a new season,” Ms Lewis continued.
“You work so hard during the off season from competition and always anticipate how the racing will go. You also feel all the adrenaline and excitement that comes with pulling up to a start line, which is a completely different feeling from doing it in training.
“This competition is always a whirlwind as we fly in, race, and leave. We got to Arizona on May 12th and raced the 13th and 14th and flew back on the 15th. My first race on the 13th was the 800m and I came away from that with a second place finish and 3 seconds off my PB time.
“This race isn’t my strongest one yet but I definitely feel stronger in it as I get more experience racing it and training for it. I then competed in the 100m and 400m on the 14th where I placed first in the 100 and second in the 400.
“Overall, I was happy with how the competition went and can’t wait to continue racing this season!!”
This is a wonderful interview. Thank you to BerNews – and Congratulations and Best of Luck to Jessica Cooper Lewis – an amazing Paralympic Athlete !