Tokyo 2020 Flash Quotes: Day 7 Afternoon/EveningComments from Team GB's athletes following day seve

Athletics Comments from Team GB’s athletes following the first day of athletics at the Games that took place at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo on Friday Dina Asher-Smith Age: 25 Hometown: London: Orpington Result: Finished 2nd in her women’s 100m heat, behind USA’s Teahna Daniels, in a time of 11.07s to qualify for the semi-finals on Saturday. On the performance “It felt good, it felt good to be out here and to finally get going, and it’s just great to finally get my Olympics underway. “Today was just about making it through to the next round safely at the same time as knowing I’ve got another level to give tomorrow, so I am really happy. “And I do have another level – of course I do, it’s an Olympics. On the stadium/lack of spectators “You are trying to go and perform and do well but I have to say, obviously as an athlete you love a full stadium, you love spectators. At the same time, it is what it is and you’ve still got the job to do.” Daryll Neita Age: 24 Hometown: London: Camberwell Result: Finished 2nd in her women’s 100m heat, behind Ivory Coast’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou, in a time of 10.96s to go sub-11 seconds for the first time, setting a new personal best and qualifying for the semi-finals on Saturday. On her run “I don’t want to say it, but it felt like it could have been better. Obviously I’m really grateful and really happy for that first round, executing and getting a PB. “Under 11 seconds is where you need to be heading into the final. I actually came here telling myself I have to be in that final. “I don’t see any way other than that, honestly, so this is a great stepping stone to that and this shows I can do it. “I’m more than capable, so now it’s just about going back, recovering and getting ready for tomorrow. On the track “It’s going to be a very fast championships, let’s put it that way! It feels amazing, it reminds me of London. “When I came and did my pre-meet and had a look at the track I thought London straight away – it reminds me of home.” Tom Gale Age: 22 Hometown: Somerset: Bath Result: Cleared 2.28m in the men’s high jump with his third and final attempt to qualify for the final on Sunday. On his performance and inspiration to clear that final jump “I feel amazing. I’ve missed a significant amount of technical work which is why today I was a little bit inconsistent and frustrated to be second and third attempt in the last two heights. “I just got to the end and the image which came to my mind was my Dad sat in front of the TV, heart rate at like 210, and my Mum curled up in a ball watching away from the TV sat right next to him. I was like ‘I can’t let them down’! “Also I’m good friends with a lot of the people who were competing, and I want to spend some more time with them – I haven’t seen them for a full year! On the final “I’m really happy about today, but on the other side, yeah I cleared 2.28m which is a massive clearance and felt really good, but in the finals if I’m on my third attempt it’s going to be massively costly for medals. “I believe in myself, my knee’s a bit uncomfortable so I’ll get that addressed by the physios, and if I get to 100% I still believe in myself to get a medal.” Marc Scott Age: 27 Hometown: North Yorkshire: Northallerton Result: Finished 14th in the men's 10,000m final in a time of 28:09.23 On the heat “It said it was like 30 degrees on the track and just felt even hotter than that. Going into the race you feel good, you feel good, the laps go by and you’re still feeling good, and then just bam, it hits you pretty hard and it’s over the last mile where I’ve struggled a lot more than I thought I would. “With the conditions, there’s not much that you can do about it, you’re either in it or you’re not, so you’ve just got to commit to it either way regardless of the conditions because if the race gets away from you then you’re not going to do much. “Regardless of the conditions, everyone faces it, so you’ve just got to commit and hope for the best really." On the strength of the field “It’s probably one of the most stacked 10kms we’ve had in a long time. I’m glad to be a part of it and place well, and I’m happy with my race.” Swimming Comments from Team GB swimmers following the final session of action at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. Ben Proud Age: 26 Hometown: Malaysia: Kuala Lumpur Result: Fourth in a time of 21.93 in his 50m freestyle heat to qualify for the semi-finals, which take place on Saturday On the wait to compete “We planned for this. We stayed back in the holding camp for an extra week and, as much as it’s good to do so, I really have to get into the meet. “That heat was okay, I made it through which is what you have to do, but at the same time it’s all about tomorrow morning, trying to get through the rounds and putting in the best performance. “I’ve been watching the guys, medals are coming more and more often now so it’s much more common. “I just want to get into the race now. I just need to prep well for the morning and doing our best to get through. On the journey to Tokyo “It’s been a hell of a journey, the past five years, some highs and some pretty bad lows. I just want to get this competition done, doing as well as I can and we’ll see from there.” Daniel Jervis Age: 25 Hometown: Wales: Neath Result: Second in a time of 14:50.22 to qualify for the Men’s 1500m final, which takes place on Sunday On his Olympic spirit “I’m in the best shape of my life, physically, and over the past 18 months I’ve really worked on my mental state in the pool. “Normally I come to these big competitions and crumble under the pressure, this is the Olympic Games and I have had pressure, 100% good pressure that I’ve put on myself. “Everything else is just good support. I’ve really done what I’ve worked on. The heats are hardest part for me. In Sunday’s final, I just want to have a bit of fun. “I’m in the Olympic Games, this is my dream – and all I want to do is have a laugh and a good time." On the British team “Team GB are doing so well and I’m very proud to represent them. I just want to show everyone back home that a normal person like me, if they work hard, they can do anything. “I’ve been on the team with these boys for a long time. They’re phenomenal in the pool, but when they’re out of the pool, they’re normal and nice people. “I try to be as nice as possible and I get it back which is everything to me. “I’m in with an apartment with Tom [Dean] and Duncan [Scott] – if I’m not going to be inspired by them then I’m not going to be inspired by anyone.” Canoe Slalom Comments from Team GB canoe slalom athlete Bradley Forbes-Cryans, who finished sixth in the K1 final in 110.58 at Kasai Canoe Slalom Centre. Bradley Forbes-Cryans Age: 26 Hometown: Scotland: Roslin On finishing in the top six “That sounds absolutely fantastic. Coming to the Olympic Games, my only goal for myself was to do my best, and I feel like I can walk away from this having done that. “In the final, I unfortunately had a poor cross from gate four to gate five which has cost me a medal today. You start your run with great intentions, a solid plan in my head, and I had no doubt I was going to be able of delivering that. “Unfortunately I’ve been on the wrong side of the small margins of sport but I’m absolutely thrilled to be here. I’ve loved every moment of it and I can’t wait to get home to celebrate with all my friends and family.” On his Olympic experience “Sport is about small margins. And for my selection back in 2019, it’s not like anyone gifted me that, there’s a selection policy in place. I had to finish in the top five at the senior World Championships, which is no easy effort, and I had to be the top British boat in that top five. “That was all I could ask of myself. On that day, I went out with great intentions back then and it paid off for me. “Today, unfortunately, I’ve been on the wrong side of that. “All of the British public have been fantastic with me out here, I can’t thank them enough for getting behind me and I really felt that back at Team GB HQ.” On his family “Everyone has their own problems in life that they’ve got to deal with. My dad went into hospital, first of all with a stroke, and secondly with COVID on the back of that. “That was really difficult for me and my family to deal with the time. When I visited him in hospital, all he wanted me to do was my job of preparing as well as I could for the Olympic Games. “To both my parents back home, I love those guys so much and I can’t wait to get home and see them.” Football Comments from Team GB footballer Ellen While following the 4-3 extra-time defeat to Australia in the quarter-finals. White scored a hat-trick in the match to take her tally to six goals for the tournament. Ellen White Age: 32 Hometown: Buckinghamshire: Aylesbury On the result “I’m devastated, I really thought that we could win the game and I thought we played some amazing football. “I really thought, with this group of players, we believed we could go on to win gold. I’m absolutely heartbroken but I couldn’t be more proud of this team and the staff. “We haven’t been together very long but the relationships, the connections, the feel has been amazing and I’m really proud of everyone. “It’s a horrible feeling but I wish Australia the best of luck in the next round. “I’m really proud of the performance we put in. We were so close, that’s why we love and hate football at the same time. There are fine margins and we didn’t quite get it in the end. “I can’t fault anybody, we gave absolutely everything in the 90 minutes and extra time.” On her goals, including the hat-trick today “I would have given up every single goal to win a gold medal. I’m really proud to have contributed to goals, to score for the team, to be part of this team, but I would have given it all up for a gold.” On coming together as Team GB “We came together as this group believing we were going to win gold. I’m surrounded by immensely talented individuals, immensely talented players, staff, and we truly did believe. “I know we were only together a short amount of time but what we did in that short amount of time is pretty incredible to be honest. So I’m really proud.” Hockey Comments from Team GB hockey player Sam Ward following the 2-2 draw with world champions Belgium in Men's Pool B. Liam Ansell and Rupert Shipperley scored for Team GB. That followed on from a draw against the European champions, the Netherlands, having lost 5-1 to Germany in the previous pool game. Team GB will now face India in the quarter-finals, which takes place on Sunday. Sam Ward Age: 30 Hometown: Leicester On the draw with Belgium “We’ve shown a lot of courage against them recently, whether that’s as England or Great Britain. “We beat them and lost to them in the Euros and then got a draw with them today, it’s showing we’re putting our game out there, hopefully we can go out there against India and put out one hell of a performance. “Playing in some medal matches would be a dream come true." On building performances “We’ve put in a couple of dogged results early doors, got a bit of a pounding [the 5-1 defeat to Germany], a slap we probably needed but we’ve put two really good performances out against the European champions and world champions. “We’ve come away with a draw against both, we’ve definitely got to keep smiling. I’ve got a lot of confidence in us right now and it’s about building into the big games and not peaking too early." Equestrian Comments from Team GB eventer Oliver Townend after today's dressage tests at the Equestrian Park. Townend sits top of the individual standings after day one of competition (23.60 on Ballaghmor Class) with Laura Collett fourth (25.80 on London 52). Two of the three eventers for each nation have competed in dressage with Team GB sitting atop the standings with a combined 49.40. Tom McEwen, the third member of the team, competes tomorrow. Oliver Townend Age: 38 Hometown: West Yorkshire: Huddersfield On his test "Very happy with the horse. We know he's special and I'm just very grateful for him to do a clear round in there. “A very safe test on my own terms. I'd want a little bit more but I think 23 is a very good starting mark for the team. “He went in and he did his best in conditions that he's not used to, in a stadium that's very, very special. “You'd think because there's no crowd, there's no atmosphere. But these stadiums, a little bit like Kentucky, they create their own atmosphere when you're going through the tunnel and he doesn't quite know what's happening. “There's definitely enough of an atmosphere in there to make it a special occasion, to push horses into lacking concentration." On competing early on in his first Olympics “The pressure bit doesn't bother me. Obviously, it wouldn't be my chosen job in life to be path finder but at the same time, the first bit's out the way and he's done a very commendable job so fingers crossed we just keep the work up through the next three, four days and hopefully see where we end up." Rugby Sevens Team GB rugby sevens players Celia Quansah and Alex Matthews following the 21-12 quarter-final victory over USA. Team GB will face France in the semi-final at the Tokyo Stadium, at 11.30am local time on Saturday. Celia Quansah Age: 25 Hometown: London: Twickenham On the victory “The grit and determination we showed, especially in that defensive set at the end, was unreal. We showed heart like no other and I’m just so proud of the team. “We know what we’ve got to do – fuel up and come back firing tomorrow.” Alex Matthews Age: 27 Hometown: Surrey: Camberley On the defensive solidity Great Britain displayed “Backing each other up, trusting each other to make those one-on-one hits. They are strong runners. “We’ve got some of the smallest girls, we’re not a big team. Defence wins you the game and makes it easier once you’ve got the ball.” Boxing Comments from Team GB's boxers after their quarter-final and Round of 16 bouts at the Kokugikan Arena on Friday Pat McCormack Age: 26 Hometown: Tyne and Wear: Washington Result: Beat Uzbekistan's Bobo-Usmon Baturov 4-1 on points (split decision) in men's welterweight (63-69kg) quarter-final to guarantee himself an Olympic medal. Faces Ireland's Aidan Walsh in the semi-finals on Sunday. On the fight “It was a good fight. I got the first two rounds under my belt then I got cut in the third round because he was coming in with his head, throwing everything, the kitchen sink at me. But I got through it and got the win, so I'm over the moon. On securing at least an Olympic bronze medal “It's unbelievable, it's something I've always dreamed of, to get a medal at the Olympics. “But now's the time to change the colour. Gold is the dream and then I've completed amateur boxing. “I'm getting better in each fight, I'm warming into the tournament and hopefully I just keep getting better. On having the support of Team GB team-mates in the arena “If there was no-one here shouting for us it wouldn't be as good. I've got my brother and all my team-mates up there, I can hear them all and it's unbelievable.” Ben Whittaker Age: 24 Hometown: West Midlands, Darlaston Result: Guaranteed at least a bronze medal by beating Brazil's Keno Machado 3-2 on points (split decision) in men's light heavyweight (75-81kg) Quarter-Final. Faces Russian Olympic Committee's Imam Khataev on Sunday On securing an Olympic medal “It's a bit weird. I've said after every fight that a bronze is nothing, a silver is nothing. But when you actually do get that feeling, I couldn't help but let the emotion out of me. “I was crying, bogeys were flying everywhere! I tried to keep as calm as I could, but I couldn't help it. I've got to compose myself and Sunday is when it gets real. On the fight “It was very tight. I knew it would be like that. In my weight category, with my style, they all run at me and I can pick them off and have fun. “When the draw came through the first day, my Dad said 'your final starts on Sunday' but I told him, 'I'll beat the first two, but the quarter will be hard.' “He's a tall, rangy kid, and you don't see many of them my way. I knew it would be hard but I had to stay composed and pull it out." Golf Comments from Team GB golfer Tommy Fleetwood following his second round 69. Fleetwood sits on three under, currently tied for 25th, eight shots behind the leader. The second round was halted due to dangerous weather in the area and will resume at 7.45am local time on Saturday. Paul Casey was three under for the day, seven under overall, when his round was halted after the 17th hole. Tommy Fleetwood Age: 30 Hometown: Merseyside: Southport On the performance “I feel alright, came back out and made a couple of birdies. I don’t know why it keeps happening but it’s a bit of an annoying finish with a three- or four-footer on the last and I feel completely different. “I’ve got a lot of work to do over the weekend. It was a bit more consistent today, the first round was a bit more up and down but it was alright. “I need to just make a few birdies over the weekend.” On the start of the round “I played good from the get-go. It was a steady round of golf. I had a couple more chances to make birdie, but I was pretty good and solid at doing the right things. “Two bogeys I made were pretty disappointing, I didn’t have a bad lie on either. “It’s a bit of a weird one, you’re just looking for the very top of the leaderboard and where I am feels a bit naff at the moment. “It’s difficult to stay patient, keep plodding along and take what you’ve got when you know that there are only three positions that can make a difference to the whole event.” Sailing Comments from Team GB sailors after the latest day of competition at Enoshima Yacht Harbour. Dylan Fletcher Age: 33 Hometown: Surrey: Thames Ditton Result: Remains in 49er top spot, with the top four separated by five points. With Stuart Bithell. On the conditions “I think the 49er class is always super tight when it becomes a bit lighter. It becomes about a clear lane and a bit of management. We said it was going to be a bit higher scoring and I definitely think we saw that. “Unfortunately we picked up a big one in the second race which we probably didn’t need. “We were a bit sticky off the line and I didn’t make the best decision on the first beat. We clawed our way back in to it nicely, it was just unfortunate we picked the wrong side of the run on the final downwind.” “I find it quite a difficult venue to see the breeze and I just got that wrong. It was about eight places I think we lost down that run." On the difference between this performance and the last Games “I don’t think we had a good one at all last Games. I think the highest place we got to was fourth and after day two we were 14th so it’s quite different to be in with the hunt. “If we had been told at the start of the week we would have been in this position going into the last day of fleet racing, we would have been super happy.” Diving Comments from Team GB divers Grace Reid and Scarlett Mew Jensen after the women’s 3m springboard heats. Grace Reid Age: 25 Hometown: Edinburgh Result: Finished 19th in the women’s 3m springboard heats, missing out on the semi-finals with a score of 268.15 On the performance “Massively frustrating, very frustrated and not the result I was looking for. I made a massive mistake in the session and fought all the way to the end but it just wasn’t enough. “The depth in my event is so strong and you can’t afford to make a mistake like that when girls are diving at that level. “There are some positives from the last dive but for now the glaring thing is the second dive cost me a place in the semi-final and it is just frustrating I wasn’t able to showcase what I wanted to." On the Games “It has been so special, it is a wonder these Games went ahead so safe as they are. This will go down in the history books and to be part of Team GB is such an honour.” A message to her family “I am so sorry that is what I had to show for the work everyone has put in behind me, it is not what I wanted but I appreciate the support.” Scarlett Mew Jensen Age: 19 Hometown: London Result: Finished 22nd in the women’s 3m springboard heats, missing out on the semi-finals with a score of 243.25 On her performance “Going into it, I was confident but as soon as I stepped on the board I felt the nerves. Those first two dives are my banker dives but they didn’t go quite right because I had so much adrenaline and I was so pumped to go. “I have struggled with my third dive for quite a long time but I have nailed it recently. But today I was just a little bit off it and that sums it up. I have got loads more in me. “To finish strongly is good, that ends my season right there so I am happy to finish it on a high." On the experience “My teammates have told me to write it all down, take it in and learn from it when I come back from the break. There was a bit of inexperience there but I have now got an Olympics under my belt at 19.”