London: Great Britain’s triumphant Olympic team returned home from the Rio Games in a gold-nosed plane yesterday, as officials trumpeted their success as the “best sporting achievement” in the country’s history.
Some 320 athletes and support staff travelled back from Brazil in the British Airways Boeing 747 with “victoRIOus” emblazoned on the side.
Team GB’s Olympic medal haul was its biggest for more than a century, with a total of 67, including 27 gold, putting Britain behind only the United States in the overall standings in Rio.
“I think it is the best sporting achievement by any team in British sporting history,” said British chef de mission Mark England at a press conference at London’s Heathrow Airport.
Adam Peaty, who started the British gold rush by smashing his own world record to win the 100 metres breaststroke swimming title added: “It’s great to be back on British soil again and I can’t wait to inspire the next generation of British athletes.”
Meanwhile rower Katherine Grainger said she was glad the team had been a source of joy for the country after a year of political upheaval.
“The lovely thing is that after London 2012 we thought it could not be replicated, that feeling of uniting a nation, but the reaction here at Heathrow is just a small taste of what is to come,” she said.
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