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Hannah

Cockroft

The 20-year-old was the first athlete to break a record inside the venue back at the test event in May in the T34 100m.

On Friday, she was nearly half-a-second off that tally with a time of 18.06 seconds but still booked her place in the sporting annals of the stadium with the first British gold of the Paralympics here.

For an athlete who had initially set herself a Paralympic goal of competing at Rio de Janiero in 2016, now she has her eyes on double gold.

Cockroft will return to the track on Thursday for the heats of 200m before the final the following night and, judging by her form and the fact she is the world champion over the longer distance, she looks in good form to achieve the feat.

That was incredible. I was really scared - Hannah Cockroft

"I've got the 200m left next Thursday so I need to keep my feet on the ground and remember what I'm here for," she said. "I've gone into races too confident beforehand and lost.

"I need to remember that these girls still have the possibility of beating me. I will do what I do best, which is win."

One of the more colourful members of the British athletics team, Cockroft has said in the past she competes in Wonderwoman underwear while she paints her nails the colour of the racing kit she is wearing.

As for her racing chairs, they take the names of her favourite athletes. Her first chair was named after Blade Runner Oscar Pistorius, the next after British Paralympian Ian Jones. Her last incarnation is Sally, a nod to her friend and fellow Paralympian Sally Brown.

Racing on Friday, she described herself as a "very proud Yorkshire lass" as she was bedecked with white rose earings, a nod to the county's symbol, while her parents unfurled a Yorkshire flag from the stands.

I am happy with that, I'm well chuffed - Hannah Cockroft

Of her gold-medal winning run, Cockroft said: "That was incredible. I was really scared. It's just a lot of people out there and they all expected me to do what I did. Sometimes I can go out a little bit too hard."

Cockroft's time was quicker than she achieved in the heats but she looked closer to her own world record in the earlier round after easing up long before the line.

"The time this morning was 18.2 seconds, a new Paralympic record," she said, "and I set up at about 70m. That was always the plan. I wasn't being cocky, I was just reserving my energy.

"I did 18.06 tonight. I have done faster in the past but this is the end of my season now, I am trying to peak at a very strange time of the season. I am happy with that, I'm well chuffed."

By Matt Majendie

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