The Helensburgh BMX star suffered a concussion when she hit the deck in the semi-final.

Having experienced heavy falls in the past, Sakakibara anticipated a couple of weeks of rest would be enough to return to full health.

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But with headaches and fatigue still lingering, the 22-year-old has been unable to resume competition.

There has been progress, but it's been inconsistent, resulting in a challenging period for Sakakibara.

"It's been quite a weird, new experience for me," she told the Mercury. "Having post-concussion symptoms for this long and learning how to manage it has been a frustrating experience.

"I had a concussion in 2019 and I was able to race two weeks later. That was my experience with concussion. I didn't understand why some people said they couldn't ride for two months, now I understand."

Sakakibara's caution comes after a difficult two years for her family.

Older brother Kai saw his Olympic dream dashed in a heavy crash last February.

The incident left him in a coma and fighting for his life. The athlete suffered a traumatic brain injury and was left with permanent injuries.

Saya is well aware of the risks of competing before she is fully recovered. That's why she sat out the recent World Championships and decided to return home from Europe.

The athlete has been able to complete light gym workouts and recently finished a BMX session for the first time since the crash.

Once she emerges from hotel quarantine at the end of next week, Sakakibara will consult with a number of leading neurologists to finalise a path to full health.

"One of the main reasons why I came back was to get proper treatment and make sure next year I don't have any problems.

"Head injuries are frightening, they're one of the most feared injuries in our sport. I knew I wasn't going to push myself if I'm not 100 per cent. If I do crash again, I can damage myself worse or injure another body part.

"This is a delicate injury and recovery process, I have to be patient. I was hoping rest would help everything go away, but I soon realised that wasn't working.

"It was time to make sure I'm treating this properly. I'm hoping I'll be cleared by the end of October. I'm making progress, I just need guidance to make sure I'm doing everything right."

All of Australia was aware of Sakakibara's story by the time she arrived on the start line in Tokyo.

With Kai and mum Yuki in Japan to participate in the Paralympics Torch Relay, the nation was willing Saya to a memorable gold medal.

The athlete admits the pressure got to her, adding to her already high expectations for an Olympic Games in her country of heritage.

"I tried not to put too much pressure and expectations on myself," Saya said. "I tried not to listen to the media, but I ended up wanting so badly the result to have the fairytale ending.

"The brother and sister going to the Olympics, the brother has a near fatal accident and the sister keeps going to represent both of them and gets the gold medal.

"Even though I tried not to think about it, I knew how much I wanted it and knew how good the story would've been. I never really realised how much I attached myself to that story until afterwards, just feeling how much it affected me afterwards when I didn't get it."

Having spent the past two months in France with boyfriend and fellow Olympian Romain Mahieu, Sakakibara has had a chance to reflect on her time in Tokyo.

Now, she recognises how big an achievement it was just to compete in Japan.

The experience in Tokyo has also motivated Sakakibara to return to the Olympic stage in three years and pursue that medal she missed out on.

"To be an Olympian was a huge goal of mine from such a young age. I have to remember that's a huge goal I was able to accomplish.

"A medal would've been amazing, but it's almost like this is the beginning of the story to my next Olympics endeavour.

"Although I do want to go to Paris for redemption, I have to make sure I don't put too much pressure on myself. I have to remember the Olympics and the result isn't everything, it doesn't define me."

One of the most heartbreaking moments of the Games came when Sakakibara conducted an interview after her heavy crash.

With tears in her eyes, the athlete apologised for falling short of a fairytale victory.

The response in Australia, and particularly the Illawarra, was immediate.

Saya had nothing to apologise for.

The athlete was surprised by the reaction and she can't wait to give back to a town that helped her through a tough period. First on her list is to buy a scoop of The Sakakibara from Gelato Man.

"The response was insane, I didn't expect that," Sakakibara said. "I almost expected support from the BMX community, but to receive it from Helensburgh, I was so overwhelmed.

"That's probably the most memorable part of doing the Olympics, seeing so much support from a tight community like Helensburgh.

"I felt so grateful to have had so much support even though I didn't do so well. That really helped me get through what I thought was my failure. It really helped me find another perspective on what happened.

"It's not all about me, it's about community and where I've come from. I can't thank them enough for doing that, it helped me a lot after the Olympics."

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