The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
IT’S ‘SNOW’ JOKE FOR MONIKA
Killorglin’s Olympic rower finds humour in her ‘snowed in’ plight at the National Rowing Centre
INTERNATIONAL rowing star Monika Dukarska’s training schedule took a peculiar turn this week when she found herself snowed in for four days at the National Rowing Centre (NRC) in Cork. The Killorglin woman and her coach David McKenzie McGowan turned up for a routine session at the Centre but were snowed in for four days when the weather took a turn for the worse.
But humour is often the best response and Monika inscribed ‘Send Bread’ in the snow and posted it on social media, parodying the nation’s obsession for bread during the storm.
“Everyone was texting to see was I okay. I just kept saying ‘send bread’,” Monika told The Kerryman. Monika is nothing if not tough and she had been commuting to the NRC to train on a regular basis, but decided instead to avail of its sleeping quarters. But Storm Emma had other plans and Monika soon realised there was no way out once the snow came.
Not to be denied, she took to the lake for daily sessions but the snow soon put an end to this. Monika said while the lake was calm, the conditions deteriorated rapidly making the ergometers and indoor rowers a handy alternative.
“I was hoping to get home in time but the snow came. My coach and I were the only ones left in the Centre so we just decided to make the most of it by doing 3 training sessions a day which was a good as it proved a good opportunity to get my full programme done each day. Being out on the snow was a new experience which certainly broke the monotony of it all. We had heat, electricity and Wi-Fi so we weren’t too badly off it must be said,” Monika added.
Monika’s friends took to social media all weekend to show their support with one friend calling her a ‘warrior’. Once there was signs of a thaw her rowing teammate, Sanita Puspure came to the rescue with a loaf of bread.
Next up for Monika is the National Trials in March, followed by the Piediluco Regatta in Italy in early April. This will also be followed by an intensive two-week training camp in Varzi, Italy where it’s sure the weather will be a whole lot better!