On the Podium

Marit Bouwmeester is the most decorated female sailor in Olympic history, winning medals at four consecutive Games, including two golds. She credits her success to the mental strength she amassed over the course of two decades, committing herself to constant improvement, and succeeding where people she regarded as more talented failed. But has becoming a mother changed the way she sees sport and t...

Derek Loccident was a college American football player when, in 2018, an accident changed the course of his life. But despite becoming a below-the-knee amputee, he refused to give up on returning to the football field, and ended up exceeding everyone's expectations. Then another opportunity arose that set him on a path he'd never expected - competing at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. Eliza Skinner an...

Puerto Rican tennis player Monica Puig wasn't ranked among the favourites for the women's singles at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Though she was in the best form of her life, she hadn't been seeded in the draw, which contained multiple Grand Slam champions and finalists, including both Venus and Serena Williams. Nobody knew that she was about to have the best week of her career - including Monica hersel...

Noemie Fox grew up in a family of canoeing and kayaking champions, but she didn't believe she could become one herself. She struggled to master the skills that seemed to come naturally to her relatives, and felt like she didn't have what it took to reach the top. Then, in her mid-20s, things began to change. With the addition of the chaotic, high-intensity discipline of kayak cross to the Olympic...

It takes a lot more than practice to to make it onto the podium. Eliza Skinner and Ed Harry meet four more extraordinary athletes who've won medals at the Olympic and Paralympic Games, finding out how - and why - they reached the top, and what the rest of us can learn from their journeys. All episodes available Thursday 24 July.

Ntando Mahlangu was born with fibular hemimelia, a condition that meant his legs didn't develop fully below the knees. After spending his childhood in a wheelchair, he made the decision to undergo amputation aged 10. When he received his first set of prosthetic "blade" legs, his whole world changed - and four years later, he was on the podium at the Rio Paralympics, with a silver medal around his...

Men's pole vaulting has been part of the Olympics since the inaugural modern Games in 1896 - but there was no women's competition until more than a century later. When America's Stacy Dragila became the first woman to win gold in the event at the Sydney Olympics in 2000, it was the culmination of years of campaigning from athletes and coaches, who'd been training for an opportunity they were never...

Jess Learmonth was a talented junior swimmer, but aged 15, she decided she'd had enough. Over the next few years, she and her partner worked in supermarkets, and travelled through Asia. When they returned home, Jess realised she wasn't done with sport yet - but she didn't expect that her desire to get back into shape would eventually lead her to the top step of the Olympic podium. Eliza Skinner an...

John McFall's life changed forever when, at the age of 19, he lost the lower part of his right leg in a motorcycle accident. His dream of joining the British Army was over - but sport gave him a way to find the challenges he'd been seeking. A little over eight years later, he sprinted to bronze at the Beijing Paralympics. Then he left the track behind, and turned his attentions to a new challenge:...

Eliza Skinner and Ed Harry meet more amazing Olympic and Paralympic athletes ahead of the 2024 Paris Games. New episodes from Thursday 27 June. Paralympic sprinter John McFall left athletics behind to become an orthopaedic surgeon - and is now setting his sights on outer space. Triathlete Jess Learmonth nearly abandoned her sporting dreams to work in a supermarket, until an epiphany led her back....

From an alcoholic home to three gold medals aged 16, swimming was Carrie Steinseifer-Bates’s "safe place". But the pressure of being an elite athlete took its toll, and Carrie herself became an alcoholic. Today she is sober and dedicated to helping others.

Australia’s track and field gold medallist Jared Tallent campaigned for years to get what was rightfully his, following a doping scandal. Already an Olympic silver medallist in race walking, it took four years before a Russian rival was disqualified and Jared finally got his gold medal.

The Olympic water polo gold medallist inspired by her friendship with the late basketball star Kobe Bryant. After an accident left her with severe injuries, Kaleigh Gilchrist vowed to get to Tokyo in his memory. And in honour of her Olympian father.

“It saved my life.” BMX competition helped the Swiss-American athlete fight anxiety attacks, which left her unable to leave home as a young teenager. The Olympic bronze medallist is now a mental health advocate.

Singapore’s most decorated Paralympian, with five gold medals. When Yip Pin Xiu won her first gold at the Beijing Paralympics, she was the youngest in her country’s team. And it was the first time ever that Singapore’s national anthem had been played in an Olympic arena.

The Argentinian legend who fought back from cancer. Santiago had won Olympic bronze before he got sick. After years of struggle, he came back to take gold at the Rio Games.

The star basketball player in the US Olympic team. And, off the court, a voice for the abused. Breanna Stewart speaks frankly about her own experience of child sexual abuse, to give hope and strength to other victims. Since becoming a parent, she campaigns to change attitudes on professional sport and motherhood.

Gold medal-winning speed skater Denny Morrison’s near death experience, and a teammate’s selflessness. A competitor gave up his place to give Denny a sporting break, but a devastating motorbike accident was to follow. He fought back against multiple injuries, before then suffering a stroke. But Denny refused to be beaten, qualifying for the 2018 Olympics.

From rowing gold to tackling taboos. Paralympian Birgit Skarstein challenges stereotypes. A gold medallist at the Tokyo Paralympics, she campaigns for women’s sport and disability rights.

Olympic bronze against the odds, in only Molly Seidel's third ever marathon. Her success came after years of battling an eating disorder – a struggle with which she still lives. She talks about her mental health issues and the physical problems which bulimia can cause.

A champion swimmer’s journey to find a new path outside of the pool. Markus Rogan held a world record and won two Olympic silvers for Austria. But when he stopped competing, his world unravelled. Markus trained for a new career as a psychotherapist, and it led him back to the Olympics - as a sports psychologist.

A champion on and off the track. Paralympic track and field star Jaleen Roberts was born with physical disability cerebral palsy. But she has never let it stop her. She shares her mental health journey to help others. (CP description from Cerebral Palsy Alliance in US)

Still winning medals nearly 40 years on from his first Olympic Games, Australian equestrian Andrew Hoy has no plans to retire. After becoming the oldest man to win a medal at the Tokyo Olympics, he’s gearing up to compete again.

From a child fleeing conflict to the fastest Paralympian on earth. Salum Kashafali fought for survival, escaping the civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo with his family. He took 100 metres gold at the Tokyo Paralympics, breaking his own world record and becoming a global role model.

The non-pro Austrian cyclist who beat the best, without the support of a single teammate. When Anna Kiesenhofer lined up for the women's road race, few thought she was a contender. But her belief paid off and she became the first Austrian to win gold at a Summer Games for 17 years.