Eyeing the 2024 Paris Olympics, several athletes are toiling hard to make it big this year. But the ones who’re girding up to contest across five events have stronger goals than the others. Pentathlon, which breaks down to pente (five) and –athlon (competition), requires the most dexterity. Speaking of the stellar lineup of pentathlon athletes, Great Britain’s Joe Choong, the modern pentathlete, needs special mention.
He poured his heart out in an EssentiallySports Exclusive interview. Choong, having drawn inspiration from his brother Henry, ‘sort of copied him’ initially. Even now, after tasting success, he never fails to acknowledge his family’s contributions. In the exclusive EssentiallySports interview, Choong opened up to host Atharv Phadke, shedding light on his familial bondings, especially with his father.
Pentathlon athlete Joe Choong gets teary-eyed while speaking ‘parents’
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When host Atharv Phadke asked the Olympian in the EssentiallySports Exclusive interview, “how did your parents contribute in your success to becoming an Olympic champion right from the start of your career?”,he didn’t flinch a little before opening his heart out. Since five components in his sport include fencing, freestyle swimming, equestrian show jumping, pistol shooting, and cross-country running, Choong has to be more time-oriented than other sporting icons. His reply asserted that, despite a lack of time, he never faced much difficulty. Kudos to his father. He retorts –“when I was sort of a more serious swimmer, just being like the world’s best taxi service, like picking me up from school, taking me to the swimming pool 20 minutes down the road, taking me home, getting me like feeding me in the car because there was no time to go and get food somewhere else”.
As a kid he might have failed to realize the sacrifices his family made for him, the 28-year-old feels every inch of it now. Growing up, had it not been because of his brother, he wouldn’t have recognized the fire inside him. So, he didn’t skip to appreciate Henry, too. Within the EssentiallySports Exclusive, there was more heartfelt tête-à-tête as well.
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Having his brother as a role model
When his brother’s turn came, Choong said about him, “.…my younger brother made me the competitive person that I am. Like, we were always trying to outdo each other when we were younger, comparing swimming times when we were the same age. And like that’s sort of the competitive spirit that I still have today”.
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The funny thing is, the person, because of whom he’s at this height, is younger than him. Moreover, competing alongside his girlfriend, Olivia Green has also filled with abundant athleticism in him. In an interview with Olympics.com, he said, “Between me and Liv it’s always a little bit of a competition”. If both the Choong brothers and Green compete in the same arena at the Olympics, it would be a show of a lifetime for his family.
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