Power relishing prospect of competing on Olympic stage
By Stephen Leonard
NADIA Power has spoken of her delight at getting the opportunity to compete on the Olympic Games stage having, this week, been named on the Team Ireland Athletics squad for Tokyo.
The 23-year-old Templeogue woman will be flying out with fellow athletes to a holding camp in Fukuroi next Friday, before heading to the Olympic Village three days before the start of the athletics events on July 30 when she will line out in the 800m.
Templeogue's Nadia Power will compete at the Olympics Games in Tokyo
“It's very exciting and I'm delighted it happened because, this time two years ago, I didn't think I'd be in contention to make the Olympics,” Power told The Echo.
“I just want to take it all in and enjoy the experience, but, also I'm very eager to perform at my best there too.
“My family are delighted and my neighbours have put up some buntings and signs so it’s really nice of them.
“I’m a bit embarrassed. I don’t know what to do with all the attention, but it’s really nice of them. They’re really excited,” she said.
It is a tremendous achievement for Power who has not been very long competing on the senior circuit.
A bronze medallist in the 800m at the European Under 23 Athletics Championships in Gavle in 2019, she broke the 19-year-old Irish Under 23 record over that very distance when competing in Italy the following year.
A superb 2021 indoor season that was really ignited with an Irish 800m indoor record on her way to second place at the Vienna International and then victory in the IFAM Meet in Gent, was followed up with a very solid display at the European Indoors where she reached the semi finals.
Now looking ahead to the approach to the biggest challenge of her career so far, the former Templeogue AC athlete who now races with DCH said: “We’ll travel to a camp in Fukuroi with some of the other sports as well. It’s just kind of a bubble situation with just Team Ireland in a hotel.
“We’ll get about ten days training there and I guess that’s just time to acclimatise and recover from the big, long journey and get some training in. Then three days before the race we head to the Olympic Village.
“I’m racing on the first morning of the athletics so that will be the morning of the 30th of July.
“It’s just so exciting. My plan is to go there and deliver the best performance that I can,” she said.
