RHASIDAT ADELEKE SAYS that she is going back to basics in her bid for Olympic success, with the Los Angeles Games less than 20 months away.
Adeleke was part of a small contingent of Irish Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls who made a short trip to the City of Angels last weekend. While she has made Texas her home since her days as a scholarship student and has visited LA on many occasions, this time was special.
“Yeah, it’s really cool to be at the Coliseum,” smiled the 24-year-old, who was speaking from the track venue for the Games, which take place in July 2028.
“We’re actually here right now, like, we can actually see the stadium as I’m speaking to you, and yeah, it just puts it into perspective.
“We were just speaking about how huge it is, and envisioning the track being laid out here and the fans screaming, like, a bunch of Irish fans. So it just makes it all feel a lot more real.”
The Tallaght AC star put a difficult couple of years of injuries behind her in some style when, in July, she earned last-gasp qualification for the European Championships, winning the national 200m title in the process.
Then Adeleke stormed through to win silver on a memorable August night in Birmingham, securing a podium finish at the Europeans, and that has given her food for thought about what is to come.
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Adeleke celebrates European silver in the 200m. Morgan Treacy / INPHO
Morgan Treacy / INPHO / INPHO
“At the moment, the four (hundred) is still my main goal, but the two (hundred) has this year shown that there is a possibility for the two, but it’s all about timing,” she said.
“So, we’ll definitely see how it plays out, but you just never know. The season can be unpredictable sometimes. You can set out to do one thing and one event, and then things can change. But yeah, the four is still my main goal.”
Next year will provide more opportunities to figure out her best approach, as the World Championships aren’t until September.
However, Adeleke doesn’t yet know if she will commit to a full indoor season before then. She admits she hasn’t planned that out with her coach, Edrick Floréal, yet, as she has only just started her off-season.
“The years that I was at my best, I was able to actually do the indoor season,” she said. “Obviously, with the injuries, I wasn’t able to do that (last) indoor season. So it’s definitely something that I’d be willing to look at.”
Perspective
Adeleke has confirmed she will remain connected with the Sport Ireland Institute in Abbotstown, having benefited greatly from its services before the Nationals and Europeans.
“They’re great, and I’ve identified a lot of things I can work on,” she said. “So I’m definitely going to keep connected with them and bring them along the journey.”
She adds that she has a “different perspective” on her first Olympics in Paris, where she finished fourth in both the individual 400m and the 4x400m relay. She wants to build on those results in LA.
Staying mentally fresh is also a key priority with the next Games in mind. “That’s something that we’re definitely going to try and implement a bit more,” Adeleke remarked.
“Especially after the Olympics, and in 2025 and 2026, with the injuries and the constant need to make sure that I’m at the top of my game, I realised how important it was to get that downtime, get that family time, get that time to get away and have that mental break.
“So we’re definitely going to prioritise those opportunities moving forward, but also work smarter, not necessarily work harder, because we’ve done the working-hard part and the really difficult sessions and the gruelling work, and that essentially caused me a lot of injuries.
“So now we’re going to take things back to basics, where we’re going to focus on what works and the quality of the work, and also make sure I’m living a full life that I can enjoy, have fun and have time to breathe.
“And when I do come back to the track, and when I do go to train, I’m in the best position to give my full 100% effort and just not experience any burnouts again.”
Rhasidat Adeleke is an Allianz Ireland ambassador.
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'It just makes it all feel a lot more real' - Adeleke sets sights on LA Olympics
RHASIDAT ADELEKE SAYS that she is going back to basics in her bid for Olympic success, with the Los Angeles Games less than 20 months away.
Adeleke was part of a small contingent of Irish Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls who made a short trip to the City of Angels last weekend. While she has made Texas her home since her days as a scholarship student and has visited LA on many occasions, this time was special.
“Yeah, it’s really cool to be at the Coliseum,” smiled the 24-year-old, who was speaking from the track venue for the Games, which take place in July 2028.
“We’re actually here right now, like, we can actually see the stadium as I’m speaking to you, and yeah, it just puts it into perspective.
“We were just speaking about how huge it is, and envisioning the track being laid out here and the fans screaming, like, a bunch of Irish fans. So it just makes it all feel a lot more real.”
The Tallaght AC star put a difficult couple of years of injuries behind her in some style when, in July, she earned last-gasp qualification for the European Championships, winning the national 200m title in the process.
Then Adeleke stormed through to win silver on a memorable August night in Birmingham, securing a podium finish at the Europeans, and that has given her food for thought about what is to come.
“At the moment, the four (hundred) is still my main goal, but the two (hundred) has this year shown that there is a possibility for the two, but it’s all about timing,” she said.
“So, we’ll definitely see how it plays out, but you just never know. The season can be unpredictable sometimes. You can set out to do one thing and one event, and then things can change. But yeah, the four is still my main goal.”
Next year will provide more opportunities to figure out her best approach, as the World Championships aren’t until September.
However, Adeleke doesn’t yet know if she will commit to a full indoor season before then. She admits she hasn’t planned that out with her coach, Edrick Floréal, yet, as she has only just started her off-season.
“The years that I was at my best, I was able to actually do the indoor season,” she said. “Obviously, with the injuries, I wasn’t able to do that (last) indoor season. So it’s definitely something that I’d be willing to look at.”
Perspective
Adeleke has confirmed she will remain connected with the Sport Ireland Institute in Abbotstown, having benefited greatly from its services before the Nationals and Europeans.
“They’re great, and I’ve identified a lot of things I can work on,” she said. “So I’m definitely going to keep connected with them and bring them along the journey.”
She adds that she has a “different perspective” on her first Olympics in Paris, where she finished fourth in both the individual 400m and the 4x400m relay. She wants to build on those results in LA.
Staying mentally fresh is also a key priority with the next Games in mind. “That’s something that we’re definitely going to try and implement a bit more,” Adeleke remarked.
“Especially after the Olympics, and in 2025 and 2026, with the injuries and the constant need to make sure that I’m at the top of my game, I realised how important it was to get that downtime, get that family time, get that time to get away and have that mental break.
“So we’re definitely going to prioritise those opportunities moving forward, but also work smarter, not necessarily work harder, because we’ve done the working-hard part and the really difficult sessions and the gruelling work, and that essentially caused me a lot of injuries.
“So now we’re going to take things back to basics, where we’re going to focus on what works and the quality of the work, and also make sure I’m living a full life that I can enjoy, have fun and have time to breathe.
“And when I do come back to the track, and when I do go to train, I’m in the best position to give my full 100% effort and just not experience any burnouts again.”
Rhasidat Adeleke is an Allianz Ireland ambassador.
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2028 Los Angeles Games Athletics Rhasidat Adekele