Steve Arnold knows he may only get one shot at Paralympic service and the former Army sergeant is determined to make it count.
Evergreen Arnold, 42, only started Para Nordic skiing five years ago after losing both of his legs while serving in Afghanistan in April 2011.
Scaling the Games heights in 2018 came too soon but four years later, Arnold’s place in ParalympicsGB’s team for Beijing 2022 is secure.
Arnold will be one of the older members in Britain’s 25-strong contingent – ParalympicsGB’s biggest team for the Games since Lillehammer 1994 – and admits a long-term desire to banish those PyeongChang demons helped book his seat on the plane.
“It’s an incredible feeling,” said Arnold, one of over 1,000 athletes able to train full-time, access to the world’s best coaches and benefit from pioneering technology, science and medical support thanks to vital National Lottery funding.
“A massive amount of hard work has gone into this. I just missed out in 2018 – came into the sport too late and needed to do too much to get there, so I’ve had so much drive and determination to compete and get there this time.
“At the time, just missing out it was very disappointing. I found it tough for the first couple of months after but looking back, I probably wasn’t ready. Four years more of training was definitely what I needed.
“I’m not getting any younger, I’m 42-years-old and didn’t start this sport until I was 37. Most people are thinking about retiring then, rather than getting to their first Paralympic Games.
“I’ve put a lot into it, and it will probably be my one and only chance. We’ll see what happens after this one – but I just can’t wait to get out there.”
“It’s going to be the biggest event I’ve ever done – it probably will be my one and only Games so I want to put my best results out there.”
Arnold became close with fellow ParalympicsGB athletes Jaco van Gass and Micky Yule through his time in the Army, both of whom bagged medals in Tokyo this summer.
He’s had to wait slightly longer for his time on the big stage to come but after a rock-solid World Cup season, has finally achieved his dream.
Arnold scored a top ten finish at last month’s World Championship in Lillehammer and arrives in the Chinese capital with momentum.
The Wiltshire star will compete in both the biathlon and cross-country events in China’s Zhangjiakou district as part of a five-strong Nordic team alongside Scott Meenagh, Callum Deboys, Steve Thomas and Hope Gordon.
He can’t wait to have the eyes of the world watching and says flying the British flag with his teammates will make all of that sacrifice worthwhile.
“The main thing for me is to get out there and give my best performance,” added Arnold, who knows that bagging a medal in Beijing would add to the 1,000-plus achieved by British athletes since the advent of National Lottery funding to elite sport in 1997.
“To race with all five of us in the Nordic team on the biggest stage on the world and showcase our sport drives me the most.
“I can’t wait to get out there after four years of blood, sweat and tears.
“Going out there racing with these great friends of mine will be the most incredible feeling for me.”
No one does more to support our Olympic and Paralympic athletes than National Lottery players, who raise more than £30 million each week for good causes including grassroots and elite sport. Discover the positive impact playing the National Lottery has at www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk and get involved by using the hashtag: #TNLAthletes
