ANGELA Hannah may have endured one of the most stressful passages to Rio, but for that reason she is prepared to enjoy the occasion.
The Banbury & District Canoe Club member was named in the Great Britain team on July 18 – the last day for athletes to be confirmed for the Olympics.
Hannah and K2 500m kayak sprint partner Lani Belcher replaced Elena Meroniac and Roxana Borha after the International Canoe Federation excluded all Romanian athletes following positive tests for banned substances.
For the 30-year-old, it is relief more than anything she will be on the startline for Monday’s heats.
“I definitely think it has been one of my hardest years, so much being in limbo,” she said.
“It is such a great feeling now and getting to that start line has been the hardest journey.”
Up until the decision it had been a year of disappointment for the duo.
After finishing one place outside automatic Olympic qualification at last year’s World Championships in Milan, they were still expecting a spot through the re-allocation of unused quota places.
But, following a review of the results, they still missed out.
They also fell short at the European qualification event at Duisburg, Germany, in May.
Now their places have been confirmed, Hannah, who competed at London 2012, just wants to take it all in her stride.
She said: “We will give it everything. We may come back disappointed, but it won’t sour the experience for us because it was so hard to get there in the first place.”
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