Channel 4 Paralympics star Stef Reid makes urgent plea to organisers: 'Four years is not enough!'

Reid is a track and field Paralympian who has competed for Canada and Great Britain, mainly competing in the T44 long jump and sprint events.

Speaking exclusively to GB News, the 39-year-old reflected on the Games and what could change as well as the Channel 4 documentary Path to Paris: Paralympic Dream, which aired over the weekend.

The programme followed five British athletes as they prepared for the Paris 2024 Paralympics and offered a unique insight into how National Lottery players support them on their journey.

"The thing is, it's not if it only happens every four years, it's not enough to really engage people, and in these two weeks," Reid admitted as she reflected on public interest in parasport.

She continued: "It's impossible to properly convey all of the stories, all of the incredible things that you're seeing.

"And so to have a documentary like Paralympic Dreams, where you get a behind-the-scenes look at what it's like being a para-athlete.

"And the thing is, I think as para-athletes, we take for granted that the lives that we live, the things that we do to perform our sport.

"For me, it's it's just it was normal. It would be normal to turn to someone and say, 'Hey, do you mind holding my legs while I hold this coffee?'

"And people will think, 'Oh, that sounds like a really bizarre sentence,' but that's just our everyday life.

"And so for someone else to be able to witness that and engage in it, it just gives you the ability to then see, appreciate, love, understand the sports you're going to see next week even more. And I mean, parasport is awesome."

Reid was born in New Zealand to British parents and moved to Toronto, Canada when she was four years old.

At 16, she was involved in a serious boating accident, with her life saved by a surgeon in Toronto who amputated her right leg below the knee.

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After competing in various games, Reid turned her attention to commentating for the Paralympics and continues to lend her voice to support parasports.

Path to Paris: Paralympic Dreams aired on Sunday but is available to watch on Channel 4's streaming service.

National Lottery players have transformed Athletics in the UK, with more than £300million invested since National Lottery funding began.

They support our elite athletes to win medals on the world stage and have invested in clubs, facilities and programmes across the country to enable more people to take part in the sport.