YOU DON’T always get what you want. You get what you need. Derval O’Rourke needed this European Indoor bronze medal like the earth needs oxygen and after what happened to David Gillick about 30 minutes earlier we did too.
As sporting redemption goes, it was fairly magnificent and fully deserved. When they say you’re over the hill, past your prime, then the best possible response is to quietly prove them wrong – only O’Rourke, naturally, was anything but quiet in Turin last night as she cherished this moment.
The 60-metres hurdles is a very short race but it took her a very long time to explain what it meant to win bronze. That’s how it is when the two years since winning her last two championship medals turned into one long nightmare.
“I’d like to think I kept the faith but it took until today for it to be totally restored,” she said. “It’s been some journey. I mean if I was told this in September, I would have taken it so quick. Because this really does feel like a comeback and that’s nice.
“And I was nervous, just because I felt winning it was within my grasp. So a percentage of me is disappointed. But the rational side of me is not.
“I’ve now got a gold, silver and bronze from three major championships. After two years that have been tortuous at times, and extremely difficult, and dark, no, I can’t be disappointed.”
After winning both her heat and semi-final earlier in the day, it took national records from two athletes ahead of her to deny O’Rourke gold: Belgium’s Eline Berings taking the title in 7.92 seconds, and the Czech Lucie Skrobakova a surprise second in 7.95.
O’Rourke still ran her season best of 7.97, fairly safe in third ahead of Norway’s Christina Vukicevic (8.04) with the British hope Sarah Claxton fading into eighth (8.21).
And there was a nice ring to that bronze, adding to her World indoor gold and European outdoor silver of 2006.
“Warming up I normally listen to hard-core rap. But here I was listening to Elton John, I’m Still Standing. I was just laughing, because it does take a lot to keep coming back, and this has been the hardest year.
“There were times when you think ‘My God, was 2006 a fluke? Do I know how to nail this?’ This proves I can. The only championships I don’t have medals now are World outdoors, and Olympic Games. That’s a nice target for the next five years. Hopefully I can go now and make the final at the World Championships in Berlin.”
O’Rourke didn’t realise it at the time but there was the added pressure of having to make up for Gillick, who had just crashed out of his 400 metres semi-final in the sort of fashion that will definitely give him a nightmare or two in the coming days.
Gillick’s reaction to his fatal collision with the Romanian Ioan Vieru is unprintable here, but all that really matters is that he came off the worse – and with that went his chance of a precious third successive European Indoor title in today’s final.
The appeal to have Gillick reinstated was, not surprisingly, turned down.
Indoor 400 metres running is often the loose equivalent to a street brawl and if Gillick couldn’t handle the bit of pushing about then he probably only had himself to blame – although that’s not saying he didn’t blame Vieru.
He can bounce back, however, if he too can draw some inspiration from O’Rourke.
“Without my coaches Seán and Terri Cahill I definitely would not be running anymore,” she added. “They’ve been amazing support and this medal is 100 per cent because of them. Because when things go bad, not enough people stand up and have faith in you.
“It’s easier for everyone to think you’re amazing when you’re winning medals, but not when you’re walking off the track with your head down.
“We started training in September 20th, up a hill in Meath, with their little kids, Ciarán, Killian and Niamh. And Ailish McSweeney, who is one of my best friends in the world. And I’ve had an amazing new weights coach, Mark McCabe. He came in when I was out of shape, and just depressed. I’d sulked for a month after Beijing.
“So this feels like a group medal. For all those, and my parents. And my boyfriend. All who stayed with me through all the bad times.”
Times were particularly bad around Christmas when O’Rourke lost her two main sponsors. Still she never lost hope.
“That was a decision they had to make in the current economic climate. But I would never criticise them. It’s just been funny to come from having a sponsored car to driving my mum’s 99 C Fiesta.
“I still don’t know if I’ll get a grant this year. But that’s when you know you love athletics. Because if the Sports Council burned down tomorrow I’d still run, still try to win medals.”
