British heptathlete Jessica admits defending gold in Rio will be difficult due to injury and motherhood, but says it will exceed everything she has ever achieved
Jessica Ennis-Hill recorded a personal best of 6.63metres in the long jump in Ratingen, Germany recently
British track and field star Jessica Ennis-Hill, who won a heptathlon gold at the 2012 London Olympics, said she is aiming at retaining her medal at the forthcoming Rio de Janeiro Olympics — as there will be no home pressure on her.
Jessica Ennis-Hill recorded a personal best of 6.63metres in the long jump in Ratingen, Germany recently. Pic/Getty Images
"I less pressure going into Rio. Obviously London 2012 was such a big year for me. The whole experience was an amazing thing to go through. This year, I have pressure on myself and expectations," Jessica said.
"I'm very satisfied with what I've already achieved, but my target for Rio is to go out there and perform at the top of my game. I would love to retain my Olympic Games title. I want to go there and put my best possible score on the table," she said.
When asked about her expectations at Rio, she was optimistic about her chances. "I've been to Rio only once before so I haven't experienced it all that much. But I'm looking forward to seeing what the crowd is like. Obviously it will be different to London but I think it will be a really great carnival feeling," Jessica remarked.
"If I am able to defend my title in Rio then it would be one of my greatest achievements ever I think — having had time out through injury, having my son and then coming back. I don't think many people have done that. Rio is not going to be easy but I'd love to win there.
"Everything's coming together now and I'm feeling good. Training over the past few weeks has been going really well and it's been good to be back in the competitive environment recently. There's still some time left before Rio to put some work in as well," she added.
The 30-year-old said her dream as a younger athlete was to stand at the top of the podium.
"As soon as I started athletics, I loved it from day one. My dream was always to stand on top of the podium. It was always about having that feeling of winning gold," she said.
"As I got older, I realised the different championships and levels you could get to, and the Olympic Games became a huge dream for me. I wanted to firstly become an Olympian and secondly to stand on the top of podium as a winner."
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