One might wonder how Sonia O'Sullivan could get motivated for a five-mile road race in Galway at this time of year. The buzz of Sydney already seems so much longer than a fortnight ago and the procession of accolades since can't exactly have sharpened her competitive edge.
Yet there is a lot to run for. Well over 20,000 spectators are expected to line the streets of Loughrea tomorrow afternoon for what, at the very least, will be the warmest of homecoming races for the Olympic silver medallist. Still, that's far from the only attraction about tomorrow's BUPA Ireland Run. In the same race last year, and just three months after giving birth to daughter Ciara, O'Sullivan produced a stunning time of 24 minutes 27 seconds for what should have been a new world best except that a downhill stretch of the course was later revealed to have breached the IAAF gradient rules.
Not surprisingly, the organisers in Loughrea have this year avoided that downhill section and the new two-lap course of the town is primed for another world best attempt by O'Sullivan. The target time is 24 minutes 47 seconds, set by Britain's Paula Radcliffe at Balmoral Castle in April of last year.
And to complete what should be a sparkling race, Radcliffe is there to provide real opposition and renew friendly rivalry with O'Sullivan which was recently displayed in the Olympic 10,000 metre final.
On that occasion, Radcliffe gambled everything on an audacious front-running bid for gold rather than settle for a minor medal by running more conserved. Eventually finishing an exhausted fourth, Radcliffe took a week out to recover on Hamilton Island just north of Sydney. And she arrived in Loughrea yesterday pumped to get that race out of her system.
"Sydney is now in the past and I'm well rested," she said. "I've come here for what I know will be a very hard race. Sonia will have the benefit of the home support which means she will be extra tough to beat but that will also inspire me to run as hard as I can.
"I love the distance and the bigger the occasion the better I run. I'm under no illusions about how hard it will be to win but I'm here to protect my world record and to improve it as well." O'Sullivan has been relaxing for the last couple of days in Clogan's Castle, just outside Loughrea, and she's not playing down the race in any way. "With Paula and I in such good shape I think it's definitely possible for that record to go again," she said yesterday. "I'm feeling fit and ready and the pace will be as hard as it possibly could with Paula in there. And you can definitely get a big lift from the crowd and their support. I'm still fit and running well and I won't be holding anything back." Radcliffe's relentless front running was one of the main reasons why O'Sullivan was dropped off the pace in the Olympic 10,000 metre final but it's difficult to see how O'Sullivan can be dropped tomorrow. Both athletes are equally fresh (O'Sullivan had 20,000 metres of running in her legs before that Sydney clash) and the distance is closer to O'Sullivan's optimum.
With good conditions forecast, the record will certainly be under threat. The race has attracted something like 1,000 entries - mostly fun-runners - and with the men's field so low-key, all eyes will be on this leading duo. Mark Carroll was an original entry but a virus picked up in Sydney has ruled him out. Britain's John Mayock is a late entry and should be the man to beat.
The race of great intimacy and electricity begins at 1.0 p.m. and needless to say, the message from local Gardai is to come early. Roadside space will be at a premium. Before that, both O'Sullivan and Radcliffe will participate in an open Athletes Forum in O'Dea's Hotel in the town this evening (7.0 p.m.). Tomorrow's race, which will be televised live by RTE, will be preceded by the youth's race at 12.30. Meanwhile, the Irish team for the World Junior Championships in Chile later this month has been finalised. The men's squad will consist of Gordon Kennedy of Tullamore (400 metres), Tony Lilley of Togher AC (800 metres), Conor Sweeney of St Malachy's Belfast (1,500 metres), Liam Reale of Limerick (3,000 metres steeplechase) and Tim Flannery of Nenagh (110 metre hurdles).
The women's team is made up of Emily Maher of Kilkenny (100 and 200 metres), Martina McCarthy of Dublin City Harriers and Jo-Ann Cuddihy of Kilkenny (both 400 metres), Derval O'Rourke of Leevale (100 metre hurdles) and Eileen O'Keeffe of Kikenny (hammer).
