Team GB star Campbell considering social media blackout for Paris 2024
A leading Team GB Olympian admits she might switch off social media during Paris 2024 writes Sportsbeat's Tom Harle.
Powerhouse Emily Campbell, 29, won silver on debut at the Tokyo Games. The first British woman to win a weightlifting medal, Campbell became an instant star with her down-to-earth nature and unmissable blue and red bob hairstyle.
Campbell will head to Paris with a new army of fans but admits she may not communicate with them directly during the Games.
“I think I’m going to look into someone managing the accounts this time,” said Campbell. “There are a lot more people interested and it’s going to be a little bit different for me this time. No-one followed me before Tokyo!
“I will still try to keep people up to date, I like posting my videos at other events. I hope they bring people joy, I hope they laugh at them and take some solidarity from them.”
Campbell might be stepping back from social but Team GB’s queen of bling has promised a banging new barnet for Paris.
You’d better believe that the Nottingham native is going to raise the bar this summer and go for gold in the style stakes, as well as in the sporting arena.
“We haven’t fully decided yet but it’s gonna be cool,” said Campbell. “It has to be cool. Everyone’s expecting it - if I come out with a mediocre hairdo, everyone’s gonna be upset, aren’t they?
“I’ve heard there are some really cool stylists in Paris. Nails will be done, lashes will be done, hair will be done, and we’ll be ready to take over the world.”
Campbell self-funded her way to sporting history in Tokyo. This time, Emily will be in Paris with a bigger team behind her; she is now an ambassador for Dreams, the official sleep partner of Team GB.
“It’s still surreal seeing my face on a billboard,” said Campbell. “I’m getting more and more used to it. Before Tokyo, I was just chipping away in silence and doing everything I needed to do.
“The passion is still the same, the fire is still the same, I still want to achieve greatness and I still love doing what I do. That’s why I get out of bed every day - because I enjoy it.
“It’s amazing that people receive me and see me as a great ambassador for Team GB and a role model for sport going forward. I take that responsibility and treat it with the utmost respect.”
Campbell’s punishing programme sees her train for up to four hours a day, with each session requiring 100% intensity. Compared to the average guideline daily amount for a woman of 2,000 calories, she consumes 3,300 per day to fuel her training.
Campbell, the most successful British weightlifter of modern times, became one of the few athletes to have ever won four straight European titles with gold in Sofia last month.
“To win four in a row is hard and the target is on my back,” she says. “I would be lying if I said I didn’t want a better performance out there. But we’ve got a plan and we stick to the plan because the main goal is Paris.
“Things will happen along the way and we have to take the rough with the smooth, but I cannot complain and I count my blessings every single day.”
Official Sleep Partner, Dreams, is supporting Team GB with investment in sleep for athletes in Paris.
