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Zoe Hobbs in action at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
New Zealand’s fastest female sprinter, Zoe Hobbs, has opened up about her mental toll after she missed out on selection for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Despite meeting the Olympic standard, the 25-year-old from Stratford still fell short of the New Zealand Olympic Committee’s stringent criteria of being capable of a top-16 finish at the event.
On top of the disappointment, this year’s Taranaki sportswoman of the year nominee admits the reminders of not making the cut were hard to deal with.
“People would ask, ‘Are you going to Tokyo?’ and then you feel like you would have to justify yourself,” she told Māori Television’s Te Ao with Moana programme.
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The Kiwi sprinter smashed her own record at a meet in Hastings on Sunday.
Avid to continue her form, Hobbs featured in events in Europe but still could not escape.
“I then went overseas and still got the same questions from people.”
Hobbs felt frustrated after the constant reminders and admitted it did not help her mentally.
After her non-selection, she took to social media to express what she called her reality, which was misrepresented in the media, she said.
Her post mentioned working hard for a rare moment in time, making sacrifices along her journey and not reaping the rewards.
“It especially hurts when you’ve qualified but are denied selection due to NZ standard/policy,” the post said.
Media described Hobbs as ‘angry’ and ‘lashing out’ about the non-selection, but the post was more to express the work she put in, performances and intention to continue.
But within a matter of months, she bounced back to break the national 100m record for the first time. This year was her best. It included more record-breaking sprints at the Oceania Area Athletics Championships and World Championships, as well as coming sixth at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Hobbs’ momentum and form since missing Tokyo should be enough to justify selection into the Paris Olympics 2024 team, where she hopes for a sub-11 second 100m finish. Her current record sits at 11.08 (+07).
She credits staying healthy and happy keys to her success.
“That sounds so broad and silly, but through trying to make that my number one priority and manage what I was doing off the track just as much as what I was doing on the track really helped translate into seeing the best performances I’d had.”
Where to get help
- 1737, Need to talk? Free call or text 1737 to talk to a trained counsellor.
- Anxiety New Zealand 0800 ANXIETY (0800 269 4389)
- Lifeline 0800 543 354
- Mental Health Foundation 09 623 4812, click here to access its free resource and information service.
- thelowdown.co.nz Web chat, email chat or free text 5626
- What’s Up 0800 942 8787 (for 5 to 18-year-olds). Phone counselling available Monday-Friday, noon-11pm and weekends, 3pm-11pm. Online chat is available 3pm-10pm daily.
- If it is an emergency, click here to find the number for your local crisis assessment team.
- In a life-threatening situation, call 111.
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