Charlotte Payne hopes her Commonwealth Games debut will prove to other deaf people that hearing loss does not have to be a barrier to sporting success.

The Team England hammer thrower, who underwent cochlear implant surgery in 2024 after losing her hearing aged just three, says representing her country on one of sport's biggest stages in Glasgow this summer is about more than just medals.

Instead, she hopes her story will inspire others who may never have seen someone like themselves competing at the highest level.

"I remember growing up there really wasn't that much representation from people with hearing aids or cochlear implants," said Payne, who is a two-time UK Athletics Championships gold medallist.

"To be on a stage like the Commonwealth Games and have a cochlear implant, and show that you can continue through adversity, break through barriers and overcome obstacles, is really important.

"It doesn't have to hold you back if you don't let it."

Payne, from Newbury, described receiving her cochlear implant as life-changing, calling the day it was switched on the "best day of my life so far".

Having worn hearing aids for most of her childhood, the 24-year-old admitted it has only been recently that she’s now been able to fully appreciate the challenges she’s overcome.

"Looking back, I realise what I've been through, and I can almost give myself a little bit of respect for how I handled things because it has been really hard," continued Payne, who broke the ICSD World Deaf Women’s Hammer Throw Record with a distance of 70.59m in June 2022.

"Especially being a deaf athlete competing against hearing athletes."

Hammer throw presents its own unique challenge for someone with hearing loss due to an athlete’s reliance on balance and coordination.

There was a time Payne could barely stand on one leg without falling over, making her journey even more remarkable.

Now ranked third in the Commonwealth, Payne is refusing to hide her ambitions ahead of her maiden Games.

"I'm definitely on that radar for medals," she said. "I'm going to back myself 1000%. I know what I can do and the form that I've shown this year, so I'd be lying if I said I wasn't aiming for that.

"I just want to execute what I know I can do and hopefully put on my best performance. Whatever that leads to, hopefully it'll be something big."

Selection for Team England fulfilled a lifelong ambition, although the moment itself was rather more understated than she had imagined.


Payne was cooking dinner with her parents, Denise and Ian – the latter has been her coach for the last 18 months - when the long-awaited phone call finally came.

"The tea got slightly overcooked because we were all just in shock," she joked.

"You expect to get this phone call and have this huge celebration, but actually life continues. You go to training the next day and carry on doing what you were doing before, except now you're going to the Commonwealth Games."

Glasgow marks the second consecutive Games on UK soil and Payne is relishing the chance to perform in front of a favourable crowd.

She added: “It's a rare thing. It's almost a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I know the last Commonwealth Games were in Birmingham, but it's not every time that this comes around that it's a home Games. It definitely does feel like home.

“I'm really making the most of the opportunity to compete in the UK. We don't get that many high-level meets like the Commonwealth Games or the Europeans in the UK, so to have two of those in one year is slightly strange, but it's something I'm definitely going to take advantage of.”