British cycling star Sarah Storey wins her 19th Paralympic gold

PARIS (AP) — Sarah Storey says every race is different. Yet, the outcome — gold medal — always seems the same.

The British cycling star won the women’s C4-5 road race for the fourth time straight for her 19th gold medal at a Paralympic Games.

But the 46-year-old Storey was pushed harder than ever on Friday as French teenager Heidi Gaugain almost snatched the victory in a dramatic finish in front of the flag-waving cheering home fans lining the streets in the Paris suburb of Clichy-sous-Bois.

Gaugain, 19, made her break on the final climb of the 71-kilometer course and opened a promising lead.

The experienced Storey recovered in the final 100 meters to get her front wheel to the line first in 1 hour, 54 minutes, 24 seconds. Gaugain, just half a wheel behind, was left with her third silver medal of the Games.

“It doesn’t matter whether you’re in a bike race here at the Paralympics, at the Olympics, in a grand tour, you just have to trust your instincts and race,” Storey told The Associated Press.

“And if you have as many tools in the toolkit as you can, you pull a different one out and win a bike race in a different way. And I’ve been so fortunate that I’ve always managed to find the right tool for the right race.”

Storey is taking part in her ninth Paralympics. After winning the C5 individual time trial on Wednesday, she became the only athlete from any sport to have won a medal at all nine editions going back to the 1992 Barcelona Games.

Storey was a swimmer then, winning the first of her gold medals in the pool. She switched to cycling after an ear infection at the 2004 Athens Paralympics stopped her swimming for months. Storey won the first of her Paralympic golds in cycling at the 2008 Beijing Games.

“Every single race is different, and you have to see how it plays out and make good judgment. And that’s what makes it exciting,” she said. “So it’s not easy to find motivation when there’s so many unknowns and you need to try and win a race. You don’t know what’s going to happen until it happens.”

Storey, who was born with a disabled left hand because her arm got entangled with the umbilical cord in the womb, has long campaigned for greater accessibility for people with disabilities.

“Paralympic athletes have been provided with incredible support and opportunity. And that’s the metaphor for society,” said Storey, who said disabled people can “thrive” if given opportunities and support.

“It’s about unpicking and unpacking how this is so incredible and why athletes are so well supported, and how you then translate that into something that can enable society. That enablement, that’s really key."

Storey, who will be 47 next month, is not ruling out defending her titles at the next Paralympics in Los Angeles in 2028, though she acknowledged age’s impact.

“I was creaking before the race. Absolutely. But that’s normal, right?” she posed. “It’s about finding ways to manage the process of and the privilege of getting older as an athlete. And I wanted to be an athlete for as long as I possibly could. I never anticipated eight Games, let alone nine.”

Friday’s close finish and the fight with emerging star Gaugain set the stage for more contests.

“You put yourself out there every time you get on the start line,” Storey said. “I keep doing that and keep finding ways to win a bike race. So, yeah, long may that continue.”

AP Paralympics: https://apnews.com/hub/paralympic-games

Britain's Sarah Storey, left, competes in the women's C4-5 road race during the 2024 Paralympics, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Britain's Sarah Storey, left, finishes first and win the gold medal in the women's C4-5 road race during the 2024 Paralympics, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Britain's Sarah Storey celebrates as she wins the gold medal in the women's C4-5 road race during the 2024 Paralympics, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Britain's Sarah Storey, left, celebrates as she wins the gold medal in the women's C4-5 road race during the 2024 Paralympics, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Britain's Sarah Storey reacts after winning the gold medal in the women's C4-5 road race during the 2024 Paralympics, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Britain's Sarah Storey celebrates after winning the gold medal in the women's C4-5 road race during the 2024 Paralympics, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Britain's Sarah Storey, centre, France's Heidi Gaugain, left, and Colombia's Paula Andrea Ossa Veloza celebrate with their gold, silver, and bronze medal after the women's C4-5 road race during the 2024 Paralympics, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Britain's Sarah Storey celebrates with her gold medal after winning the women's C4-5 road race during the 2024 Paralympics, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Britain's Sarah Storey celebrates with her gold medal after winning the women's C4-5 road race during the 2024 Paralympics, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Britain's Sarah Storey celebrates on the podium after winning the women's C4-5 road race during the 2024 Paralympics, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Tito Jackson, one of the brothers who made up the beloved pop group the Jackson 5, has died at age 70.

Tito was the third of nine Jackson children, which include global superstars Michael and sister Janet, part of a music-making family whose songs are still beloved today.

“It’s with heavy hearts that we announce that our beloved father, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Tito Jackson is no longer with us. We are shocked, saddened and heartbroken. Our father was an incredible man who cared about everyone and their well-being,” his sons TJ, Taj and Taryll said in a statement posted on Instagram late Sunday.

The Jackson 5 included brothers Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael. The family group, which was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1997, produced several No. 1 hits in the 1970s including "ABC," “I Want You Back” and “I’ll Be There.”

The Jackson 5 became one of the biggest names in music under the guidance of their father, Joe Jackson, a steelworker and guitar player who supported his wife and nine children in Gary, Indiana. As the family’s music careers took off, they relocated to California.

Born on Oct. 15, 1953, Toriano Adaryll “Tito” Jackson was the least-heard member of the group as a background singer who played guitar. His brothers launched solo careers, including Michael, who became one of the world's biggest performers known as The King of Pop.

Michael Jackson died at age 50 on June 25, 2009.

Speaking to The Associated Press in December 2009, Jackson said his younger brother's death pulled the family closer together.

“I would say definitely it brought us a step closer to each other. To recognize that the love we have for each other when one of us is not here, what a great loss,” he said, adding he would personally never “be at peace with it.”

“There’s still moments when I just can’t believe it. So I think that’s never going to go away,” he said.

In 2014, Jackson said he and his brothers still felt Michael Jackson's absence in their shows, which continued with international tours.

“I don’t think we will ever get used to performing without him. He’s dearly missed," he said, noting that Michael's spirit "is with us when we are performing. It gives us a lot of positive energy and puts a lot of smiles on our faces."

Days before his death, Jackson posted a message on his Facebook page from Germany on Sept. 11, where he visited a memorial to Michael Jackson with his brothers.

“Before our show in Munich, my brothers Jackie, Marlon, and I, visited the beautiful memorial dedicated to our beloved brother, Michael Jackson. We’re deeply grateful for this special place that honors not only his memory but also our shared legacy. Thank you for keeping his spirit alive," he wrote.

Tito Jackson was the last of the nine Jackson siblings to release a solo project with his 2016 debut, “Tito Time.” He released a song in 2017, “One Way Street,” and told the AP in 2019 that he was working on a sophomore album.

Jackson said he purposely held back from pursuing a solo career because he wanted to focus on raising his three sons, TJ, Taj and Taryll, who formed their own music group, 3T. Jackson's website offers a link to a single featuring 3T and Stevie Wonder titled, “Love One Another.”

Tito Jackson also is survived by his brothers Jermaine, Randy, Marlon and Jackie, his sisters Janet, Rebbie and La Toya and their mother, Katherine. Their father died in 2018.

Jackson's death was first reported by Entertainment Tonight.

FILE - Pop star Michael Jackson, center, his mother Katherine Jackson, right, and brother Tito Jackson, left, leave Santa Barbara County Superior Court in Santa Maria, Calif., April 7, 2005, after another day of testimony in Michael Jackson's child molestation trial. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian, File)

FILE - From left, brothers Jackie Jackson, Tito Jackson, Jermaine Jackson and Marlon Jackson pose for a portrait together in Beverly Hills, Calif., Dec. 9, 2009. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)

FILE - Singer Tito Jackson arrives at the opening night of, "Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour," in Los Angeles, Jan. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Dan Steinberg, File)

FILE - The Jackson 5, Michael Jackson, front right; Marlon Jackson, front left; Tito Jackson, back left; Jackie Jackson, back center; and Jermaine Jackson, back right; pose for this undated photo together in Los Angeles. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - Tito Jackson, a member of the famed Jackson 5, poses for a portrait in Los Angeles, July 24, 2019, to promote his solo project, a new version of his 2017 song "One Way Street." (Photo by Mark Von Holden/Invision/AP, File)