2 minute read
Homeward bound
AFTER ANOTHER GOLD MEDAL, GLOBETROTTING SAILOR CRAVES TIME IN PORT
by Andrew Bryan
“Miss you Anton”. Mat Belcher’s (Class of 2001) scribbled message on his hand to his eldest son after claiming gold at the Tokyo Olympics summed up the sacrifices of an incredible five years of uncertainty and unprecedented challenges. Being relegated to a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics after gold at London 2012 drove Belcher to become a two-time Olympic sailing champion. But it was his loved ones who got him over the line. “It was really tough on the family,” Belcher says. “Not only the complexities of being in lockdown and home schooling, there were risks with me travelling around (in a pandemic), which was a big concern. I had to spend a couple of nights pretty much in my garage without being able to see my kids while I waited for Covid test results. I don’t know how my wife was able to do it with me being away so much. Anton’s had to cope with being the big helper of the family, particularly with my wife and supporting the girls. My middle girl has a disability, he’s so protective and such a big helper and I wanted to give him a special moment to say thank you so much. (Winning gold) would have been impossible without my wife’s support, my parents’ support, and the sailing community to get us through.”
Belcher had already tasted success in London and was a 10-time World Champion, but he and teammate Will Ryan knew they could do better than their second-place finish in the 470 class in Rio. The 2020 Tokyo Olympics shaped as unfinished business for Belcher. But the journey to get there was more than they could have ever imagined in a world gripped by a pandemic.
“To win Olympic gold in Tokyo was pretty special,” Belcher says. “It was unfinished business and the main driver to continue. I won in London and we had a great campaign leading into Rio but during that week everything was really difficult and things just didn’t go our way. Tokyo was a fairytale ending. To take that risk and spend another five years of your life just to have that one-week opportunity to go one better, the fact that it worked out - that was the plan and the goal - but there is so much that you can’t control. To cross that line and realise that it did happen, it’s absolutely the best feeling.”
Does a third Olympic gold medal beckon? Belcher says he’s taking the rest of the year off to spend time with his family before competing in his first Sydney to Hobart yacht race. Only then will he decide on setting sail for Paris 2024.
