World rowing finalist Keogh turns her sights to the Tokyo Olympics
Talking Sport with Stephen Glennon
When Furbo’s Aifric Keogh and her rowing partner became the first Irish pair in their discipline to ever qualify for a World Championship final last September, they could be forgiven for thinking they had just taken a step closer to fulfilling the dream of competing at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
Qualification was not on offer – that comes later this year – but one would have thought the superb showing by the dynamic duo would have guaranteed that the partnership would remain intact and be nurtured and improved upon ahead of the European and World Championships in 2019.
This has been far from the case, the 26-year-old remarking she has not rowed with her partner, Emily Hegarty, since their terrific performances at the World Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria last year. Instead, the two, along with others, are back competing for the two seats in the boat.
“It was a big shock. We kind of thought that, finally, we will get our break and that we would be minded and looked after (ahead of the 2019 World Championships). Then, we were told they (coaches) were splitting us up; that they were making our boat the priority boat, which means everyone in the other boats competing are now trialling for that boat.
“They are essentially re-trialling the whole team to find the fastest two people for the boat that Emily and I raced. Basically, I have a big target on my back for this year and I have to try to hold onto my seat,” outlines Keogh, who has just returned from a two-and-a-half-week training camp in Italy.
“So, we will have trials in February and the pairings will race against each other. They might, on the day, swap us again and I could be put back with Emily. You just keep swapping and swapping until you find the fastest combination.
“Obviously, some people are very fast in training but on race day they might not be as fast. Or it could be the opposite. Someone could be behind in training all the time but once it comes to a race side-by-side they are a different person. So, you have to kind of make sure you perform on the day and you have to have confidence in yourself. Not to panic and let it affect your performance.”
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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