Sonia O’Sullivan: Back at schools’ cross-country event that made me

I used to think it was such a long journey to travel from Cobh to the All-Ireland Schools Cross-Country Championships, staged in early March of every year.

When I was competing, in the mid-1980s, the races were held in such faraway places as Dungarvan, Dublin, Roscommon and Belfast – quite the adventure for a young girl from Cobh.

This year the Irish Schools’ Athletics Association is celebrating 100 years of competition, and the first event is the cross-country championships, which take place at Sligo racecourse on Saturday.

And I’ve journeyed across many timezones to be a part of the centenary celebrations – this is the event that played the most important role in my development as a young athlete, important enough for me to come back from Australia to revisit almost 30 years later.

It was the step-by-step approach that made the Irish schools events so pivotal in my approach to athletics – the gradual improvement and then success as a young athlete. The first step was the south Munster schools, through which you qualified for the Munster schools: then finishing in the top-15 to guarantee a place at the All-Ireland championships.

In the 1984 All-Irelands in Dungarvan I finished eighth; it was my first time running the national championships and on a course I was familiar with, having already run the Munster championships there. So I was disappointed not to at least get a medal, especially as Anita Philpott finished second. I actually thought I would be closer to her than I was at the Munster championships, where she won.

Stepping stone

Sometimes when you are out of contention in a race then that extra competitive boost you normally have is missing, and the result can look worse on paper than it really is. I was determined to return a year later and get among the medals, and at those championships, staged in Dublin, I actually won. It was another important stepping stone, another level achieved.

Interestingly, I also know when I won my last All-Ireland schools cross-country. It was in 1987 and Catherina McKiernan finished ninth; the following year she won.

Looking back at the rich history of Irish schools athletics, the names that crop up each year is like reading a who’s who of athletics stars down the years. But it also reveals the many great young athletes who didn’t quite reach their potential on the senior stage.

Connection

This is a statistic that asks many questions and makes one wonder what we can do to retain more young athletes at a high level, beyond junior competition. This is certainly not exclusive to Ireland, but we need to do more to nurture and guide this young talent, to increase the pool of athletes and with that produce more success at European, world and Olympic stages.

There is no better breeding ground for new talent than the Irish schools cross-country, which is why I’m so excited to be back. I could never have dreamed back then of the lifestyle that athletics has given me since, from spending time at Villanova on scholarship, training and racing all over Europe, and eventually ending up in Australia, while all the time maintaining very close links with Ireland.

I never want to lose that connection and whenever the opportunity arises to be a part of something special in Ireland then I usually find a way to make it happen. I often joke about the long commute I now make to Ireland numerous times throughout the year but, like anything else, once you have a system and routine of doing things then it becomes so much easier.

The most important thing for me is to arrive ready to hit the ground running: so it’s equally important now as it was when I was competing to look after my health while travelling, and the best way to do this is through focusing on nutrition and exercise.

I generate the ideas in my head while running and then make a general plan for the week, particularly while travelling. I try to put aside at least one hour a day for exercise. This is not always a run but whatever can fit into the daily schedule. It’s a great way to overcome the effects of jet lag: it can wake you up late in the afternoon, when you first arrive; or likewise set your day up with an early-morning run after that first night of interrupted sleep.

The route I regularly travel is from Melbourne via Abu Dhabi direct to Dublin, using Etihad Airways. It’s nice to know the route and familiarity of where you stop off for an hour or two; if you stick with the same airline for long enough you may also be surprised at the check-in desk and get upgraded to the luxurious flat-bed seat in the sky.

Perfect balance

I make sure to order the same meal, and the perfect balance for me is the fruit platter, while also drinking a lot of water. Hydration is crucial on long-haul flights, and it can make a huge difference in the time it takes to recover on arrival after 24 hours of flying.

It also means that you don’t get to sit for too long. Getting up every couple of hours to walk around the plane also keeps the circulation going.

I know it will be a worthwhile journey, just to catch a glimpse of the future of Irish athletics in Sligo on Saturday. If I can inspire just one athlete by being here, to follow through and fulfil their potential, to reach for the stars and achieve their dreams, then the journey will feel even more worthwhile.