Emma Reid is no stranger to fear.
The 31-year-old judoka is currently gearing up to step out at the IJF World Championships in Baku, an event where she won bronze back in 2024, between October 4-11.
In a season which has already seen her successfully defend her Commonwealth Games title and clinch European silver to cement herself as 12th in the world in the -78kg category, it means that all eyes are on the British fighter.
But judo is ultimately a sport where you can win or lose in the blink of an eye, or a flip on your back. It is both a mental and physical sport.
In recent years Reid has battled hard to overcome the rush of nerves and fear that once held her captive in her sport, working alongside a psychologist to battle the thoughts that have been stopping her from thriving.
And with two successful major outings already this year, it is clear that the mantra of 'practice makes perfect' is working wonders on her psyche.
"I always worry with competitions because I get so nervous and so stressed with them," she said.
"I obviously love competing afterwards, but on the day, I hate it. I just get too wound up so it is often the case where I want to do lots of competitions to help myself for that feeling, rather than just avoiding them.
"It means that I don't get out of the habit of the shock of the nerves, and I'm always learning at each one. Just another experience of having that pressure on me is always good."
But where there is constant experience, it can also bring setbacks, which Reid found out as she missed out on defending her world medal in 2025 after suffering a second-round exit.
It all stemmed back to that fear. The fear of not believing in herself and therefore falling short.
"I've realised it's such a cycle with the psychology because you think it's one thing and then you end up swinging the other way," she said.
"The nerves are kind of a by-product of what I'm actually feeling. I'm feeling maybe a bit of lack of belief or a lack of confidence, and that's why they're there. I am very much my own worst enemy when it comes to this sort of stuff.
"In the tunnel before we go out or in the warm-up, I have been trying to speak to myself and say what I'm going to do and repeat my strengths.
"It's half distracting from the doubts coming in, but also reinforcing like I am world-class, which you often forget when you go through these competitions.
"It is easy to take a knock in your confidence, but you need to try and like build it back up, so that's really helped this year, going out firing rather than going out with 'oh god I hope I win'."
Reid made her Olympic debut as part of a five-strong all-women judoka team at Paris 2024 but saw her opening bout end in heartbreak as she picked up three shidos and lost the contest.
Since that moment, she has only become stronger, earning back-to-back Commonwealth titles, a world bronze and European silver.
Add a handful of IJF Grand Prix and Grand Slam medals to that, and Reid is GB's strongest prospect in the -78kg category.
With the opportunity to make a second Olympic Games and put down a performance to remember in LA in two years' time, Reid believes her time is coming, and the World Championships are the next step in showcasing that.
"In judo we've had about four or five competitions now that go towards the Olympic rankings, so I've still got time to learn and make it perfect for LA.
"After getting my bronze in the World Championships two years ago, I've got the belief that I can do it. The last Olympics were not in my vision because I was against another girl in my weight group from Great Britain, and it felt a lot more like we were battling to get there.
"Whereas this time, no one really is in my way, so I just have to focus on myself and get there. And I believe with the improvements I'm making, I'll be able to qualify, and I can just then focus on the performance on the day at LA."