“I think I surprised a good number of people. It’s likely that some of them had never heard of me at all. I can now be certain that they have.”
Pattison, Great Britain’s last-minute 800m qualifier, went from relative unknown to gold contender in less than 105 seconds.
Well, at least as far as his rivals were concerned.
The 21-year-old’s moment of wide-mouthed surprise came in August when he won the bronze in the World Championship. Among his difficulties is a potentially fatal cardiac issue.
Entitled ‘Fireball’ by teammate Matthew Hudson-Smith, Paris 2024 has been the goal ever since the red-headed Pattison defied the odds to go through grueling nearly made it to Tokyo for the Olympics as a teenager.
