Eilidh McIntyre entered the medal race at Tokyo 2020 knowing that a false start would probably be the only thing that could deny her and Hannah Mills gold – which is rather ironic considering that is exactly what happened to them on their flight out to Japan.
In the women’s 470 class McIntyre was joining sailing royalty in Mills – seeking her third Olympic medal and second straight gold in Tokyo.
In a Covid-19 world, just getting out there involved countless tests, living as hermits and more paperwork than a printing press.
But with all that done, McIntyre thought she had at least got over the first hurdle when she got on the plane for Japan. As it turned out, that was not quite the case.
She explained: “When we got on the flight it felt like such a lovely day. Japan was actually going to happen, it was such a fantastic feeling.
“We sat on the plane, we take off, breathe a sigh of relief that we’re actually going to be in Japan, and then our plane starting ditching fuel out of the wing. Then all the cabin crew got called up to the front, we heard the pilot’s voice saying ‘we’re really sorry everyone but our front wheel is stuck down, we’re going to have to land again’, so we needed to go back to London and land.
“We had the deputy chef de mission on our flight and she came around when we landed and said we’re fine as long as we don’t get off the flight, if we get off the flight, our Covid tests are invalid. We were thinking ‘Oh my god, are you joking?’.
“So that was pretty stressful. We took off on the same plane, but I think we were stuck there for about three or four hours. It was a bit of a drama, starting the journey out to the Olympics.”
The Team GB sailing contingent eventually landed safely in Japan, with two and a half weeks to prepare for the Games.
While McIntyre was an Olympic rookie, she had the experience of Mills to turn to whenever she needed some advice. A silver medallist in London, and then a champion in Rio, Mills was a logical candidate to carry the flag at the opening ceremony and it was an occasion that McIntyre will never forget.
She recalls: “About six or seven days before the opening ceremony, our team manager took Hannah aside. It’s really funny because just beforehand I’d spoken to the team manager about the opening ceremony and I was saying ‘I’m not sure why you’d go because of the Covid risks’.
“Then Hannah gets asked if she wants to be flagbearer. She explained all the Covid safety stuff. She said I’m not going unless I can take Eilidh, which was lovely. It was testament to our team that it was her first thought. It turned out to be such a lovely moment.
“I think we really needed it, we needed the buzz to feel like it was the Games. Particularly, Han felt like she needed that. It was her third Olympics and she needed it to feel like the Olympics. She really thrives under the pressure of that and it was a huge part of our build-up to make sure we felt that pressure.”
As well as Mills and coach Joe Glanfield, McIntyre is not short of people to turn to when it comes to advice – her father Michael won sailing gold back in 1988 in Seoul.
He was of course not able to travel to Japan, with Eilidh devising a plan for how to stay in touch with family without it distracting from competition.
She explained: “We had an agreement, I asked my dad and my sister if they could message me every day after sailing. Just to keep continuity and it was on me if I felt like I wanted to reply or not. I phoned my parents a couple of times before the Olympics started.
“I didn’t speak to anyone but my fiancée the whole of the competition, and then I spoke to my mum and dad the day before the medal race when we knew we were 14 points ahead and pretty clear.”
In control heading into the medal race, McIntyre and Mills just needed a top seven finish to clinch gold, with a false start the most likely way of letting it slip.
She said: “We felt like our danger before the medal race was to feel too relaxed and that we had it in the bag. Going into it, we felt it was ours to lose and the only way we would do that was by making a big mistake, by being complacent and allowing someone to force us into a mistake.”
They did not make that mistake, and while they endured a 40-minute wait after an official protest from the French – something McIntyre admits still hurts – they were eventually crowned champions.
That meant that it was McIntyre who had the honour of placing Mills’ gold medal around her neck and vice-versa.
She said: “That was so surreal, we had to wait for ages to get up there. It was so hot, we hadn’t been able to shower or anything. It was pretty emotional waiting and being desperate to get out. When you’re out there you just don’t want it to end.
“I really loved being able to put Hannah’s medal on her and her putting mine on. It was the most perfect moment. I know Covid caused that to happen, but it was a really special moment. Just standing there arm in arm watching the flag go up, there aren’t any words for it. You’re just in absolute awe that it’s happening and you’re stood there.
“I never even contemplated that it would be a thing but it felt so perfect to be giving it to your teammate. Perfect is the only word for it.”
McIntyre and Mills tried to take it in as much as possible in their remaining time in Japan, including supermarket sweep in the official shop back in the village and a trip to Team GB house.
And they were also treated to a pleasant surprise on their flight home – no delays this time.
“Our flight was amazing, British Airways upgraded us to first class as gold medallists and then all the other medallists were upgraded to business. There’s nothing quite like being asked your name and whether you would like to sit in 1A. That was pretty cool. It will probably never happen again.
“We celebrated the whole way home, a lot of the team came up and sat with us. We chilled out and had a really great last few hours.
“When we landed back home, we all got our identical bags. Then we walked out and all our families were there. Because we were all on one flight, everyone had someone there and it was massive. My whole family came which was amazing. My nieces were there with their chocolate coin medals. It was a lovely, special moment to be reunited with everyone.”
Since then, there has been the Homecoming, McIntyre getting to meet some of the people she had been cheering on during the downtime in the sailing – with taekwondo proving a particular favourite.
And while life has not changed that much, she has been recognised out and about on one occasion.
She recalled: “I’ve only been spotted the once, but that was great, such a nice moment. It’s crazy to be picked out of a crowd.
“When you are walking around and meeting people, that was at a festival. People meet you and you’re chatting in the queue for stuff and you don’t want to just say what you do. But when someone comes over and recognises you, then everyone else around you gets so excited.
“That’s one of the best things about coming home, seeing how winning is such a selfish journey but inspires so many people and lights up their faces. People get so much joy out of wearing a gold medal and touching it. That’s heart-warming and amazing. It makes the whole thing feel even more amazing than it already is.”
Aside from that, McIntyre has enjoyed letting the feeling sink in, taking her time over what her future may hold. It may be sailing or perhaps a move into the media.
She said: “The thing I’m struggling with, and it’s a bit controversial in the athlete world, but I’m so content with my performance, I was exactly who I wanted to be and I’ve achieved everything I wanted to achieve. So I feel like ‘do I stop here?’.
“I’m giving myself the time to do that and explore other things, see where life may take me.”
One of those things is a wedding, with plans ramping up for the big day next May. If there is one thing to take from her trip to Tokyo, she should be a dab hand at putting jewellery on a partner.