LisaAitken

My pro tip

Not winning a medal at the Commonwealth Games was by far the lowest point of my career. People often talk about channeling these negative emotions. The narrative is that losing is part of sport, so just roll with the punches and get on with it.

That’s fine – but we need to speak about it more. Athletes need to be comfortable being vulnerable enough to say “Hey, I lost, and I feel awful”.

I want to show other athletes and young people how tough it can be, and that it’s OK to feel low. It’s OK to be vulnerable about your losses and normalise those conversations and emotions.

It can’t just be: ‘I’ve won, let’s get this on social media. Let’s show the world how great I am’.

Be recognised for the bad stuff as well, because we’re human. The bad stuff doesn’t need to be called the bad stuff. It’s just part of life.