Full Steam Ahead, Glasgow!

POSTED:

It is going to be another busy year in terms of High Performance here in Athletics Ireland; we have 15 International championships under European Athletics and IAAF, as well as a smaller number of development competitions throughout the year. We are finalising all the logistics for the summer championships now, and will liaise with European Athletics, the IAAF, the Olympic Federation of Ireland, and Student Sport Ireland (for World University Games), to ensure we have all the preparations made well in advance.

The first major event we have is the European Indoors which takes place on the first week in March; the selection for this took place after National Indoors last Sunday. It is now going to be a hectic 4 days until the deadline for entries with European Athletics, and then until the departure of the team on the 27th February. We notified the athletes of their selection on Sunday evening, and they also got the first update email, which will tell them about the logistics, the venue, gear, antidoping etc. We will then send a further 4-6 emails, prior to departure, with key points of information like what to pack, what the weather will be like, and a daily schedule for the Athletes.

The same process is applied for each championship, and we try to ensure that they mirror each other. My job is to ensure that everything is taken care of, so that the athletes just have to think about performance.

Each event is different depending on location, culture, type of competition, organisers, distance from Dublin, weather, onsite logistics etc.; so, we try to minimise any issues and make sure everyone is fully informed. I regularly attend site visits with event organisers to evaluate accommodation, transport, and the venue so that we have identified the challenges prior to the team’s arrival.

When I am away at a championship I am always on duty, and what I do will range from being on hand on competition day, to “check out” athletes when they are departing accommodation to go to the track for their race, meeting athletes when they arrive or depart from the championship, to being there in the middle of the night if someone is sick or an athlete needs an accompanying person to go with them for testing.

We have a similar process for all championships, so that athletes can be reassured that we will make sure they have everything they need, such as accreditations, their competition kit. Sometimes people are so excited that some important things are forgotten; we support all athletes from experienced seniors all the way to Under 18 athletes.

As well as preparations for all the championships, we have several eligibility queries, and with the new rules brought in by the IAAF last August, we have developed a briefing document that will clarify athlete’s status.

As Anti-Doping Officer for the organisation, I liaise with the Sports Ireland Anti-doping Unit around testing at events, our registered testing pool and education. The Athletes Integrity Unit, under the IAAF, has brought in new rules for Member federations to comply with, so we are in continuous contact with them to ensure that Athletics Ireland is fully compliant.

I have been very lucky, to witness the amazing athletes we have, whether this is achieving on a world stage and winning medals, or reaching their goals such as achieving a PB or reaching a final. I feel it is a privilege to do what I do; and I never take it for granted. Its hard work, and there isn’t much time off, but I wouldn’t change the last 6 years and the experiences or people I have met.

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