PHIL Healy would have loved to race in the individual 200m at these Olympic Games, but agrees perhaps it’s a blessing in disguise that she didn’t make the quota.
The Bandon AC star has travelled to Paris as a part of the Irish mixed and women’s 4x400m relay teams, and her sole focus is on qualifying for an Olympic final like she achieved with the mixed relay team at the Tokyo Games.
At the 2021 Olympics, Healy’s individual 200m and 400m suffered off the back of her exploits with the mixed 4x400m relay team, but this time she will be fresh when she’s called on.
‘It was a blessing in Rome that I didn’t get to the semi-final of the 200 because it was the night before the women’s 4x4 and we needed as many fresh legs as possible,’ explained Healy who won a silver medal with the Irish women’s 4x400m relay team at the European Athletics Championships in June.
‘Every athlete has their individual targets and you do want to get there individually, but the team is so strong in the 4x4, we need to be as fresh as we possibly can. I will be doing everything I can for the team, and fingers crossed it will be an exciting time for the Irish athletics team.’
Healy is joined on the Irish women’s 4x400m team by Rhasidat Adeleke, Sharlene Mawdsley, Sophie Becker, Lauren Cadden, Kelly McGrory, Rachel McCann. They will be in action in the heats on Friday morning, August 9th. With the women’s 400m final on later that evening, the expectation is that Adeleke won’t be available, while Mawdsley and Becker will have both been in 400m individual action too, so a fresh Phil Healy will be crucial to Ireland’s chances of qualifying for the Olympic final.
First up is the Irish mixed 4x400m team that takes to the track this Friday evening, August 2nd. Healy is in the squad alongside 4x4 women’s team-mates Adeleke, Mawdsley, Becker, Cadden, McGrory and McCann as well as Chris O’Donnell (Sligo), Thomas Barr (Waterford) and Jack Raftery (Dublin).
‘The mixed team got to the final in 2021 and getting to an Olympic final will be the exact same aim for both teams. Once you are in the final, anything can happen,’ two-time Olympian Healy said.
‘We set a new women’s national record at the Europeans in Rome and we will definitely be looking to improve on that again. It’s about everyone coming together collectively to perform. Every other country will be in the same position, the Olympics is where every athlete wants to peak so everyone will be in tip-top shape, so we need to match that and perform at our best.’
