Allison Langdon broke down in floods of tears after hearing an Australian Olympian’s heartbreaking story.
The TV reporter, 45, has jetted to Paris to front Channel Nine’s Olympic coverage and hosted an inspiring segment about BMX star Saya Sakakibara on Wednesday.
Kicking off the live coverage ahead of the opening ceremony on July 26, Ally was reduced to tears after learning about Saya and her family’s heartwrenching story.
A profile about her career was narrated by Saya’s brother and fellow BMX star Kai, who was left comatose for two months after a horrific crash in a World Cup event in Bathurst in 2020.
Kai was devastatingly hospitalised for eight weeks before spending months recovering at the Brain Injury Rehabilitation Unit in western Sydney.
The accident left Kai with a permanent impact on his speech and his movement, and Ally was overcome with emotion listening to him voice the segment about his sister.
In the profile, Kai told how he was filled with ‘pride, love and excitement’ ahead of watching his sister Saya compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
‘She does it’s for both of us. She wears my race number – 77. It’s like I’m there with her… Saya and I never give up,’ he added in the emotional segment.
Allison Langdon (pictured left) broke down in floods of tears after hearing Australian Olympian Saya Sakakibara’s heartbreaking story
Breaking down in tears, Ally admitted she was moved by the ‘beautiful story’, adding: ‘I didn’t know Kai was doing that story about his sister. So so beautiful.’
Saya, who has also crashed and was left unconscious at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, was likewise moved by her brother’s tribute.
‘It’s bringing tears to my eyes,’ she said as she choked back her own tears in the studio.
‘To see it together and hear him say those words, it’s making me very emotional already. BMX means a lot and it means a lot to both Kai and I.’
Saya is returning for another run at the Olympics after she was left motionless on the track in a horror crash at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
She was left devastated as she was knocked out of the event after she had her wheel clipped by Alise Willoughby during the tense semi-finals.
‘I feel like I let everyone down especially my brother,’ she said of the devastating crash at the time.
A profile about her career was narrated by Saya’s brother and fellow BMX star Kai, who was left comatose for two months after a crash in a World Cup event in Bathurst in 2020 (Saya is pictured)
Breaking down in tears, Ally was left emotional by the ‘beautiful story’, while Saya (pictured with Kai in hospital) was also moved by her brother’s tribute
‘I can’t believe it’s over. It just really sucks for sure. Honestly, I don’t really know what happened, but I know that I was riding really well.
‘My stats were going really well. I came down with Alise [Willoughby] who caught up with me, we came down together. That’s all I remember.’
Saya fortunately came away from the shocking crash with just a few bumps and bruises and is returning to the Olympics this year.
The 2024 Paris Olympic opening ceremony will take place on for Friday but the action will officially get underway two days earlier on Wednesday, with the football and Rugby sevens group stages set to kick things off.
Meanwhile, the BMX competition will kick off on July 30 with the Freestyle seeding round.
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