If any Irish athletes could say they came away from the Tokyo Olympics with cold lessons and fresh ambitions pressed neatly against each other then Andrew Coscoran and Sarah Healy might be chief among them.
Both qualified for the 1,500 metres, their first step on to the global stage at senior level, ran themselves close but ultimately finished so far away in what proved the suitably blue riband events of Tokyo.
Coscoran, aged 25, came through to make the semi-finals, where he ran himself into the ground to finish 10th in 3:35.84, just a fraction outside his lifetime best. Remember what Jakob Ingebrigsten did in the final?
Healy, still only 20, found herself in a heat won by Kenya’s defending Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon in 4:01.40, the fastest ever heat in Olympic history, and made her exit in 11th place, clocking 4:09.78. And remember what Kipyegon did in that final?
It was hot out there, in more ways than one, only for both athletes Tokyo has left them plenty hungry for more progression, whatever it takes. Indeed that quest begins presently with the start of the cross-country season, both Coscoran and Healy declaring their interest in the European Cross-Country to be staged in Dublin on December 12th.
Both athletes also came away from Tokyo openly asking the same question: what will it take to get to the next level? For Coscoran, the answer for now at least is to keep doing what he’s doing, training at home with the Dublin Track Club under coach Feidhlim Kelly, believing in the process that saw him improve this summer to 3:35.66 (and also a mile best of 3:55.59).
“Yeah, definitely, it would be great to be a part of it,” he says of the European Cross-Country. “We could have a good team, maybe in the mixed relay, there is the possibility of putting one of our strongest teams out, there is a possibility of a medal.
“If we put out all our best people – Ciara Mageean, Sarah Healy, maybe Luke McCann and myself – I think we could actually have a good shout getting a medal, maybe even getting a gold because I think the other countries may not necessarily focus on it so that might be an opportunity to capitalise on that.”
As competitive as Tokyo was, it also told him how badly he wants to make the final in Paris: “I’ve seen how much better the guys are, but I think it’s doable, I think it’s definitely doable to make finals if I keep going the way I’m going. I’ve had good consistency over the last two years, but I could have four years of that consistent training and I’ll be that bit better. That’s what we’re aiming for.
“And I like the fact we’re doing it from Ireland, don’t have to rely on other countries, like we don’t have to go to America to study, we can do it in Ireland, and I take pride in the fact we’re an Irish group, running in Ireland, running for Ireland.”
For Healy, the Olympic experience doesn’t overwhelm the fact 2021 also saw her run best times over 1,500m and 3,000m, win a second senior outdoor in the 1,500; after her considerable underage success, it brought some comfort too.
“Definitely, I am proud of this summer as a whole rather than any one performance,” she says, “especially given the year I had had before that. I hadn’t had a very good year, so I was happy to turn it around.
“Also, Tokyo, in the minute, I felt was terrible and the worst thing ever but looking back I could say, ‘okay, it wasn’t as bad as all that’. I wasn’t satisfied but I know there is more in me. The whole summer gave me confidence.”
In third year law in UCD, for Healy the 2022 season offers fresh possibilities again: “I had run a lot of fast times as an underage athlete and I was scared of becoming that athlete who was at her best when she was 17. So it is a natural progression but that said I don’t take it for granted because I know how hard it is.
“I’ve had so many disappointing races and it was so nice to be back performing well and I just tried to enjoy it even if there were times when I felt I could have run faster. There are so many hard times that you have to enjoy the good ones.
“It was really hard. In 2020, I really was not enjoying it and there were a few moments where I was ready to throw in the towel. My coach [Eoin Marnell] has always, even when things have gone really badly, had confidence in me.
“That helps me feel confident in myself. I knew in the back of my mind that it doesn’t just go away. Any talent you have doesn’t just go away. I know how amazing it is when a race goes well or you PB as well so I knew I could have those moments again, even when I felt so far from it.”
