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Kiwi Paralympian gets special sendoff from her students

July 15, 2021

Holly Robinson will have plenty of support when she aims for gold in Tokyo.

Paralympian Holly Robinson has set lofty goals for her Tokyo campaign but will have a meaningful group of fans back home cheering her on.

Outside of her javelin training, Robinson is a teacher aid at Sara Cohen.

The current world number one for her class in javelin trains morning and afternoon, but in between works at the Dunedin school for students with diverse needs.

“I needed something outside of my sport that I could thrive as an individual,” Robinson told 1 NEWS.

“It's had a huge impact on me and I just love it here. The kids are awesome.”

Holly Robinson.

Sara Cohen principal Matt Tofia said Robinson’s impact is wide felt.

“Sara Cohen is a school for young people with intellectual and physical needs and having somebody here like Holly with her work ethic and inspiration reflects what we want our young people to be - the best that they can be.”

That work ethic landed her a silver in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, but her sights are set even higher for Tokyo.

“That gold medal is something that I really want, it's something I've been fighting for for a long time,” Robinson said.

“At the end of the day, I'm just going out there to throw the best I can throw.”

Her students believe she can do it.

“If she gets a gold we will be having a big party back down here and the whole school can joins us for a big fat welcome back," Cole McCann said.

Here's hoping there's a big fat gold medal to join the party too.

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