THE SUMMER OF ’19 was a breakthrough one for Nadia Power.
The Dubliner established herself on the international scene in July as she bagged a brilliant bronze medal in the European U23 800m in Sweden.
It wasn’t exactly a straightforward journey to the podium, however, but after a roller coaster ride of emotion in Galve, Power returned home with the goods. From there, her star rose more and more on the track through the summer, while her winter was also a success.
“It was the best motivation that I have ever had, having a good summer last year,” the 22-year-old smiles. “It opened up my eyes and made me think that I deserve to be here and I can compete in big competitions.
“Even last weekend I was at the Glasgow Grand Prix, which is on the World Indoor Tour, so I was competing at the same meet with so many athletes that I have been watching on television since I was really young.
“I kind of felt like, ‘I should be here and I can be here’, and it’s great to feel like that and I want to keep continuing.”
A heavy slog of winter training was broken up by her involvement on the Irish mixed relay team at European Cross Country Championships in Lisbon, before hitting the ground running with her return to racing for the indoor season.
Power comes from a 1500m background, so she jumps between two distances but a 1km run at the aforementioned Glasgow Grand Prix was an enjoyable experience recently.
“Yeah, I’m actually the Irish indoor record holder for that distance,” the Templeogue native laughs. “I really enjoyed it. I actually loved the distance and I’d love to do it again.”
Outdoor season is undoubtedly her favourite time of the year, but Power’s entire focus at the moment is on indoors — and the Irish Indoor Athletics Championships this weekend.
“Indoor season is enjoyable but it is a means to an end as no one really remembers it to the same extent as the outdoor track,” she adds, before delving into her goals for 2020.
“It’s all about making the transition to senior, coming out of the U23s.
“Obviously the Olympics coming up, everyone is talking. It will be hard for me to make the Olympics, as I haven’t really run the times which mean that I could go, but there is a new world ranking system, it’s all to do with points.
“It’s complicated but it opens a lot of doors for athletes like me, so my plan for the summer is to try to run the European senior qualifying time, improve my Personal Best [PB] and see what happens after that.”
Tokyo may not be the one, but wearing the green singlet at an Olympics is the dream.
It’s the end goal, without a shadow of a doubt.
“100 per cent, it’s a dream since I was a kid,” she beams. “It’s coming [too] soon for me this year, to be honest.
“It’s all about building, so let’s see what I can do this summer and build on it after that each year.”
Power represented her native Templeogue AC right up until last year, but she recently moved to Dublin City Harriers. It’s a more adult club, she explains, and she’s loving it there so far. She also continues to line out for her college, Dublin City University [DCU].
A third year Marketing student there, she’s currently undertaking an internship with Johnson & Johnson in Tallaght as part of her degree.
Both working and training full-time is a challenge, but it’s one she’s enjoying.
“It has been tough but at the same time, training is going well and I am not turning up to training tired and thinking I can’t do it,” she says. “I’m able to fit everything in. I’m training full time and training eight times a week. It’s tricky but it is doable.
“I’m finishing up [work] in April and I expect to see a little improvement in my performance, just by having that extra time to sleep and focus on my recovery and my nutrition. And of course, I will have the time to travel to races and camps as well.”
Balancing everything and working a full-time job is a serious motivation to really bring her athletics career to the next level. It’s driving her on to pursue her sport, and make a living from it some day.
“Just in the last year with the work and with me starting to get into better races and winning the medal at European U23s, it just makes me so motivated to do this full-time, be a professional athlete and chase that goal,” she continues.
“Whereas when I was younger I just said, ‘Oh, I’ll give it a go in college and whatever will be will be’ and it’s grand to finish up after college, and work.
“But now, I’m like, no, I have this opportunity so I may as well chase it as far as I can go with it, so hopefully after college, I’ll be in a position to go full-time.”
For now, Power trains between Templeogue, Rathfarnham and the Sport Ireland Institute in Abotstown. She’s coached by Enda Fitzpatrick and her training partner is fellow DCU star Lauren Tinkler.
She’s also working with strength and conditioning coach Domhnaill Fox from Sports Med. That’s something she’s added into her training regime this year, and she’s hoping it will pay off. Power receives necessary supports from Sport Ireland too, with nutritionists and sports psychologists all adding an edge: “It’s all about getting the extra 1%s, really.”
Her 800m PB is 2:02 (outdoor) with the Irish record standing at 2:00.58.
That’s something she’s keeping in the back of her mind as she goes between 800m and 1500m over the next while (after focusing on the 1500m some time ago, she was finding it hard to make real progress. Flirting with 800m brought a big improvement, and her performances and times across both distances improved by eventually focusing on the 8. They compliment each other: “Still, in my late 20s, I would be looking at going back to 1500… or even sooner.”)
“So I’m less than two seconds off it but two seconds is a lot in athletics,” she concedes, on that 800m Irish record.
“But you know, it would be silly not to have my eye on it in the next few years. It would be silly, and I think if it’s not me who breaks it, it’s going to be maybe Síofra Cléirigh Buttner, or Ciara Mageean. We’re upping the standard.
“But yeah, it’s no pressure. It’s exciting because I didn’t think I’d be at that level where at 22 I’m saying, ‘Okay, that could be me.’ It’s nice to be there, yeah.”
The long-standing world record of 1:53 is put to her — “we’ll worry about the two-flat first!” — and she’s as amazed as the rest of us by it.
“Ah, no one goes near it. Caster Semenya ran 1.54 last year but no one goes near that even really to be honest. It’s kind of a big deal to be breaking two minutes, really. It’s kind of mad that no Irish woman has. I think once one Irish person does, a few will straight after that really.”
That wave of talented Irish female middle distance athletes is put to her, and Power is nothing short of delighted to be part of it all.
But this weekend, they all go head-to-head.
What about her main competition for the red-hot, extremely tactical and tough 800m?
“Ciara and Síofra… I don’t know,” Power ponders. “Most likely both of them won’t be in the 800m, so yeah it’s looking like a good chance for me to be competitive for the title really.
As the interview winds down, the Nike logo on her top is pointed out and she’s asked if she has a pair of the controversial Vaporflys.
“No,” she laughs. The game-changing technology of the elite distance running shoe has allowed for much debate of late, with a track version on the way.
“That’s going to be really, really interesting. I don’t see why not, to be honest, if my competitors are wearing them… and I don’t have a sponsor so I’ll just have to get them really, won’t I, and see if they make a difference.
“It is mad though, it’s such a big talking point these days, it’s crazy.”
No gear sponsor, but open to offers no doubt?
“Definitely!”
Here’s to the summer of ’20.
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Nadia Power was on hand to launch of the AIG “Show Your Skills’ Challenge in support of 20×20. AIG are calling on women and girls of all ages, all abilities and all sports to showcase their talents by entering the online competition at aig.ie/skills to be in with a chance to win a monthly €1,000 prize.
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