Training ban giving rivals head start for Olympics – Puspure

SANITA PUSPURE, one of Ireland’s leading medal prospects at next year’s rescheduled Olympic Games, has pleaded with the Government to allow elite athletes resume normal training.

Unlike most European countries who have given the green light for the re-opening of national Centres of Excellence, the Government has ignored lobbying from Sport Ireland and the Olympic Federation of Ireland (OFI) to do likewise.

The 200 Irish athletes who have either qualified or are in contention for places at the Tokyo Games are still subjected to the 5km restrictions.

According to the OFI, there is a danger of Irish athletes being left behind with an unbridgeable gap to make up on their rivals.

Asked whether further delays could jeopardise Ireland’s medal prospects, Puspure, the current single scull rowing world champion, declared: “Do you know what? It could be the difference between retiring and not retiring as well. I’m not going to say that it never crossed my mind – ‘can I handle another year’ – then sitting at home and challenging yourself every day training on the rooftop.

“Like, it’s not easy, though I know there are higher priorities at the moment in the country,” she acknowledged.

Club rowers are back on the water whereas the National Rowing Centre in Cork remains closed.

Shocking

“The most shocking thing for me was to see all the people in the clubs get to go on the water before the high performance athletes. That was a big question for me,” Puspure said.

“I was thinking why are people who are not training for the Olympics – which is very selfish for me to think like that, but that’s high performance sport, it is selfish – and the high performance athletes are still at home training in their sheds.”

Puspure has been able to return to the water in Cork after the longest break since the birth of her two children. And already she noticed her level of performance has deteriorated.

“Every week you postpone getting back to your (normal) training you’re giving your opponent an advantage. It’s not easy to watch them, all the pictures on Instagram and Twitter.

“For everyone it would be better the sooner we get back on the water – obviously complying with all the regulations all the regulations – from a physiological point of view but also for mental health. From my personal experience it has been very challenging,” she said.

Meanwhile, Peter Sherrard, the CEO of the Olympics Federation of Ireland, remains optimistic that the Olympics will go ahead next year despite continuing fears that the pandemic will result in a cancellation.

“But having said that you can all see you can’t be absolutely sure at this stage,” he said.