Paralympic gold medalist and world record holder Cameron Leslie is back in Whangarei for some well deserved time off. Photo / Michael Cunningham
No one would blame Cameron Leslie for taking a bit of time off following his incredible performance in Rio.
The Paralympic champion set a new world record of 2:23:12 in the SM4 150m Individual Medley, shaving over two and a half seconds off his own mark.
Leslie now is taking a deserved break for a bit of rest and a touch of farm life.
"I'm looking forward to getting back around the calves, I love the country and being around it all," he said.
He said winning the gold was a fantastic experience.
"Listening to the National Anthem is always an emotional experience," he said.
"Though after touching the wall I was just glad that it was over. I had no idea what time I had swum while chasing that target time, but I just took a moment in the pool to sit there and embrace the pain."
That target time was 2:23:00, so whilst not quite reaching the mark it was a groundbreaking performance nonetheless.
The gold medal he received had a touch of difference compared to his Olympic counterparts.
The medals have small steel balls inside them and make different sounds for the gold silver and bronze.
Gold medals make the loudest sound because they have 28 balls inside them. Silver have 20 and bronze 16.
Paralympic medals traditionally had Braille on them but this is the first time the medals can be heard.
It was due reward for all the hard work Leslie put into preparing for Rio, training 11 times a week from Monday to Friday.
The training was a mixture of pool work, gym workouts and wheelchair rugby.
Wheelchair rugby remains part of Leslie's sporting life, and he feels that with a shift up a gear New Zealand could qualify for the Tokyo Paralympics in 2020.
"We aren't quite on the level we need to be at yet and it comes down to, not just me, but the whole team lifting the bar," he said.
"If we do that we will get to Tokyo. We have all the makings of a good team."
With Rio in the rear view, Leslie is in the midst of deciding what he's going to do going forward.
"I'm unsure at the moment. Looking at the next year or two, I am definitely keen to keep swimming but I'm undecided past that," he said.
Right now, I'm going to try get some balance back into my life. That balance just hasn't been there in recent times."
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