Megan Giglia

1. Tell us about yourself and how you got into Para-Cycling?

To understand who I am now you need to know who I was. I am Megan Giglia MBE, a para-cyclist for the Great Britain Cycling Team. This was oddly enough, an accidental chance of a lifetime! In January 2013, I suffered what is known as a Subarachnoid Brain Haemorrhage (SAH), also known as a haemorrhagic stroke and put in the simplest terms a bleed in the brain. I was at work when I suddenly fainted and over the course of a few days I developed a ‘crick in the neck’, having the most excruciating headaches that gradually worsened with the appearance of a bloodshot eye. Attending A&E, over a 4 day period I was prodded, poked with examination after examination. When I was diagnosed, my head was described as a ticking time bomb and although I walked into hospital by the time I left it was in a wheelchair. When I came through from surgery I had multiple cognitive and physical issues, including right side hemiparesis, memory loss, balance and co-ordination issues. Over a 6 month period I struggled with peaks and troughs of emotions, struggling to accept why this happened to me, I had lost everything I knew and had become a shadow of myself.

I was diagnosed with epilepsy and this was the start of a new journey...I impulsively grabbed a bike unable to cope anymore and with my current situation, I tied my hand to the handlebar and my foot to the pedal and cycled nearly 120 miles to my friend Hannah’s house, it took all the energy and concentration I could muster and when I finally arrived at 2 am the following morning, I was done for. I lay wallowing in self pity, my right side unable to function. Following a deep conversation with Hannah’s mum I was refocussed and more determined than ever, having cycled all this way my mission was set, I wanted to start cycling for me and used cycling as a way to build up my physical strength and re-engage the limbs that weren’t signalling and to work on my mental health.

2. How did it feel to win your first major event on home soil in Manchester?

To be honest riding was winning for me, so to win on home soil made no real difference, every chance I got to race I just honed in on the cyclist I had to chase down, when I had them in sight I just reeled them in, blocking out every minute distraction, feeding off the crowds albeit a handful of viewers.

3. How can someone reading this take up Para-Cycling and try to succeed like you?

Anyone has the potential to be an athlete no matter who they are, but you don’t have to be elite to take part or even compete. It doesn’t even have to be cycling, it can be any sport as long as you enjoy it then that’s all that matters. Grab a bike and get going, there is a variety of para sports initiatives out there and available to try, check out the para-sport webpage, contact your national governing body of the sport you are interested in, check out the opportunities available, grab a friend for moral support or have a bash by yourself. Enjoy the process and try a variety of sports to see what suits you and your abilities.

4. How are you preparing for the 2021 Paralympics and during lock-down?

During lock-down it is all about maintenance and structure, using this time wisely to keep motivated and on the ball, ensuring I am in the best shape possible ready to get back on track as soon as this lock-down is lifted. For me personally, I have a lot of distractions and family commitments at present outside of being an athlete so training is monitored closely and prioritised when ever possible.

5. Do you think disability sport gets enough media attention and how can it be improved?

The media presence is growing within disability sport but has an extremely long way to go. Around the world, para-sport has the potential to raise so much awareness as well as sporting participation across an array of debilitating illnesses and impairments and there are barriers that need to be addressed and broken down one by one. Within ‘para-sport’ globally there is only a handful of athletes within each sport that are used time and time again to highlight the successes (if your face fits). However, within the disability world as a whole, there is so much more than a handful of disabilities and it is this that will change the nation to a more can do attitude, in order to show the everyday Joe Blogs that has a congenital or acquired disability that they can relate, achieve and there is a sport that makes them more than able.

6. Out of the gold medals, personal bests and world records, what was the most memorable moment and why?

Most people would think winning the 1st Gold the Rio 2016 Paralympics would be the most memorable moment to date being the pinnacle of my career but surprisingly my most memorable for me personally was the Para Track World Championships in March 2016. As I won my first World titles and became a double world record holder, this was when the realisation set in that I was able and could achieve anything both on and off the bike.

7. What are your aims for the next 5 years?

The next 5 years is a long time and yet it will disappear in a flash! As an athlete I focus one competition at a time, but with Tokyo a little further into the distance now, plans have to change within my home life/family plans whilst this training takes place. Once I have confirmed my place for Tokyo and returned on the other side, the launch of my new business venture can begin and set my eyes on a potential transition into a completely different sport for Paris 2024. Of course I have to factor in family including wedding plans and a new addition to the G Clans family. Exciting times!

8. Who will be the biggest competition at the Paralympics?

There is a continuously strong growing group of C3 riders out there and the times are getting closer. My biggest competition is myself but don’t misread that. The reason I say that is because I tend not to think about my competitors until I really have too, and then focus on what I can control, with that being me and my mindset. I have the opportunities but only I can make the choices that could potentially lead me to another victory.

9. How do you prepare for a race and do you have any special rituals?

I always watch Tron the movie, love the ‘Daft Punk’ soundtrack and I use visualisation techniques the racing lines on the track. I have three songs that I listen to religiously before I race to get the right...level. One major component is my dedications. For every major race that I do, I dedicate to an individual and their family, that have themselves suffered due to a traumatic event such as at the hands of a stroke, cancer, a congenital or acquired disability or a physical impairment. I love racing but the actual podium bit where I receive the medal kills me deep down inside. So, I make it about others, giving back and attempting to give them something positive to look forward too and show there is light at the end of the tunnel.

10. What advice would you give someone who may be recovering from a life changing injury?

After I suffered a brain haemorrhage, I had to find myself again, determine who I was and accept who I would come to be now. When something life changing happens to you, you suddenly realise all the little things you took for granted and your priorities change. You go through every emotion known to woman kind. Everyone has advice to give, but only you hold the key as to whether you sink or swim? What is the purpose to life? You have to figure out for yourself what the new version of you is going to look like, where you are going and who you want to be. How do you turn a negative situation into a truly positive one. Acceptance is the key. You have options available, I had to relearn how to walk and how to talk again. If I were to give one piece of advice, it would be acceptance is the key, once you accept you. Then, with self-belief, drive and determination comes opportunities.