Sarah Carli's story of emergency surgery to repair a torn carotid artery supplying blood to her brain is a triumph of medicine and good fortune.
The fact doctors first told her she would not be able to exercise for five months after surgery makes her performance at the Tokyo Olympics soon after something of a sporting miracle.
"I think back now and I'm not even sure how we pulled it off," she said.
"It shows the power of the mind and how incredible the human body is."
While making it to Tokyo is a monumental achievement, the fire to win burns especially strong in professional athletes.
Racing in Tokyo simply poured more petrol on the Olympics flame.
On July 31, the Wollongong runner was on the track at the Tokyo Olympics, running fifth in her heat in a time of 56.93 seconds. Her personal best is 55.09.
"Being there and being given the opportunity, it's made me look to Paris [2024 Olympics] with more determination and drive because this is how far I've got with the cards I've been dealt."
Injury should have cost Carli her Tokyo dream
The story of how close Sarah Carli came to dying from an injury she did not know she had is harrowing.
While working out at a gym in February, she slipped with a bar on her back, causing it to fall and cut her chin and, unbeknown to her, sever the carotid artery in the neck.
Just after doctors had stitched her chin, she had a seizure in the hospital that revealed the far greater injury below the surface.
With the help of her medical team and athletics coach, the 400m hurdler and sprinter made a fittingly fast recovery.
While she had already qualified for the Tokyo Games, she was required to prove her fitness, which she did in June — about six weeks out from her Olympics race.
Reflecting on whirlwind trip while in hotel quarantine
Due to border closures, Sarah Carli had to stay in New South Wales until flying directly to Tokyo during the Olympics.
It meant she watched the opening ceremony from her family's home. Two weeks later she was part of the closing ceremony celebrations in Tokyo.
"Because of how strict everything was in the village, we didn't have much of an opportunity to let our hair down and have fun," she said.
"We were all together and waiting in the tunnel for the closing ceremony for an hour and a half, so we had plenty of time to chat.
Like the rest of the Australian Olympic team who have returned to Australia, she is now completing a mandatory 14 days in hotel quarantine.
She has an exercise bike, quality food deliveries, and the potential to wave to her fellow athletes when she sees them in other hotel windows.
"I just think after the year I've had, this doesn't seem that bad at all in the scheme of things I've dealt with," she said.
