Cole on why winning isn’t everything at the Paralympics

It is not about being a good athlete, according to Australian Paralympic Games champion Ellie Cole; being a good person will always come first.

IT is not about being a good athlete, according to Australian Paralympic champion Ellie Cole; being a good person will always come first.

It has always been the motto six-time Paralympic gold medal winning swimmer Cole has lived by, and it is what will serve as another great motivator when she walks out on to the pool deck in Tokyo in just two weeks.

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Australia Paralympic Swim Team member Ellie Cole. Picture: Wade Brennan, Swimming Australia

The Tokyo Games are not just another opportunity for Cole to add to the truckload of medals she has accumulated in three Paralympic campaigns, a haul which includes six gold medals – four from London in 2012 and two at Rio in 2016.

It is the chance to again become a source of inspiration for the next generation.

That fact came to the humble champion’s attention – again – during a media conference when first-time Paralympian Col Pearse spoke of how he was inspired by Cole.

Pearse met Cole in 2012, and upon seeing her with a swag of medals from the London Games, was motivated to make it to Paralympics.

Less than a decade later, here he is, swimming alongside that motivation.

After joking she’d give Pearse some flak, Cole reflected on what being a Paralympic Games athlete - and role model - truly means.

“To see little kids who are looking up to Paralympic athletes is something that warms my heart as it’s something I never had as a three or four year old going through my cancer journey,” she said.

“To be able to know that our world is so much more inclusion, and the Paralympic Games is such a great platform to share that inclusivity, it’s very, very special.”

Cole’s right leg was amputated above the knee before she turned three, but has never been held back by the word ‘no’.

Australia Paralympic Swim Team member Ellie Cole. Picture: Wade Brennan, Swimming Australia

She has become one of the greatest examples of what a Paralympic athlete is over her career, which includes triumphs at the Paralympics Games and World Championships and a swag of Commonwealth Games medals.

But, before her fourth Paralympic Games, she is not driven by silverware.

“Swimming for me isn’t just about going up and down the pool as quickly as I can trying to win medals for Australia,” Cole said.

“I understand that the Paralympics is so multi dimensional; it’s not just about being a good athlete, being a good person always comes first and that’s always been my motto.

“But to be able to share those experiences with the rest of the country, not just as an athlete but as a good person, it really speaks true and Australia can relate to that.”

As one of the more experienced members of the Paralympic Swim Team, who are training at the Tobruk Memorial Pool in Cairns, the 29-year-old Cole is just as driven to preserve the legacy of the Dolphins as she is to make a difference.

“I think that just goes to show the legacy of the Australian swim team is never-ending, it’s always continuing, and to be part of that is really special,” Cole said.

“Every athlete on this team knows how special it is to carry on that legacy, and we definitely don’t take it for granted.”

The Paralympic Games will start on August 24.

Originally published as Cole on why winning isn’t everything at the Paralympics