Sonia: AIT arena will have big athletics impact

THERE was a time in the not too distant past when Cobh's Sonia O'Sullivan carried the hopes and dreams of a nation onto the international stage. Everybody remembers Sonia's fantastic effort at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, when she claimed a coveted silver medal in the 5,000m, and also the three gold medals she captured at the European Championships (in Helsinki 1994 and Budapest in 1998), as well as gold in the 5,000m at the 1995 World Championships in Gothenburg. Now 42 years old, and with an amazing career in athletics behind her, Sonia O'Sullivan remains one of the greatest ever Irish athletes, and also one of the country's most popular and loved personalities. Always remaining humble and utterly likeable, even through amazing successes, O'Sullivan is held in the highest esteem by peers and colleagues, and her many loyal supporters, and this likeability was seen to maximum effect when Sonia paid a visit to Athlone last Thursday. Sonia was in town - her first ever visit to Athlone - to help perform the official opening of Planet X Ireland (in Unit 14, Blyry Industrial Estate), and also to meet and greet supporters. She also took part in the South Westmeath Hospice run in Athlone IT and received a distinguished fellowship in Athlone IT. Sonia signed autographs and posed for many photographs with grateful attendees. Planet X Ireland, the exclusive supplier of Planet X Carbon Bikes and Titanium frame bikes to the Irish market. also presented Sonia with a brand new Planet X RT-57 road bike as she starts to dip her toes into the world of cycling and triathlon/multisport. While in Athlone, Sonia also took part in a charity 5km run at Athlone IT, held to support and raise funds for Westmeath Hospice. The Westmeath Independent spoke to Sonia about her career and also the hot topic of the multi-million new indoor sports arena, with the country's first IAAF indoor running track, in Athlone Institute of Technology, a development she admitted is key to the ongoing development of Irish athletics. The new facility in Athlone IT will include a six-lane indoor athletics track, two court sports hall with international futsal and basketball courts, an elite squad gym, performance laboratory, aerobics studio, fitness suite, physical therapy suites, as well as café facilities. The athletics track and sports hall will both have 1,500-spectator capacities. An outdoor spectator stand for up to 500 people overlooking the existing outdoor athletics track is the final part of the project on a 1.6 hectare site in the centre of the campus. Developments at the site have been rapidly gathering pace of late, and Sonia said that Irish athletes will be awaiting the opening of such a high-quality facility with baited breath. "I think everybody in Irish athletics circles has been looking for this type of indoor facility for a long time," said Sonia, who now spends the majority of her time living in Australia, but who also spends much time in London and back in Ireland. "This type of facility is badly needed and will provide athletes with ideal training conditions all year around. It will mean a lot of athletes can stay at home, and don't necessarily need to go abroad for warm weather training, and I think the facility will be of enormous benefit to Irish athletes. I remember going to different countries, particularly the Scandinavian ones, where the weather would be harsh throughout the winter, and seeing the fantastic indoor stadiums they had, and I always questioned why we couldn't have anything like that in Ireland. It was something that probably frustrated a lot of athletes, but I'm delighted to see the progress at Athlone IT, and the development is something I look forward to having a big impact of Irish athletics," she added. Sonia also suggested the indoor arena will further boost Ireland's chances of winning medals at future Olympic Games and other international championships. "The current set-up in Irish athletics is very good, and the support systems athletes receive is far removed from when I took part. There's an awful lot of very promising junior athletes at the moment, and they're receiving great support to get them through to the next level. "The whole thing is far more together than when I was involved, and there's much better ways of training and so on. I think Irish athletics is in pretty good shape at the moment and I think we could do some good things in the coming years," she said. The highlight of Sonia's own career, she said, was the Olympic silver medal in Sydney. "I think every athlete chases the Olympic dream for a long time, and when you get to the stage of actually winning a medal in the Olympics, it's a fantastic feeling. The Sydney Games was my third Olympics, so to finally get a medal was a wonderful feeling. I had a very enjoyable career in athletics and it's something I'll always look back on with great fondness and with great memories. There's always ups and downs in any career, particularly in sport, and you just have to keep working hard when things aren't going your way, and eventually things will break for you," she said. Sonia was "delighted" to be help officially launch Planet X Ireland, which opened its doors to the public earlier this year. "I'm delighted to support Planet X Ireland and to have an association with them. I'm also delighted to help with the 5km fun run in Athlone IT. The number of fun runs across the country is amazing in recent times, and they're a great way for people to get fit, but to also help out charities and organisations. "Personally, I always want to go out for a run every day, but I suppose I'm more aware now of the wear and tear on my body. I've recently got into swimming and cycling, and intend to do my first ever Triathlon in Cork next weekend. Traithlons have become massive in this country and it's brilliant to see," she said. *Planet X Ireland was founded in 2010 by Morgan Fox and PJ Nolan. Both have a lifetime of experience in the cycling industry, Morgan as a pro-continental racer, and PJ as former President of Cycling Ireland. Both remain key players in the cycling community and continue to be heavily involved in local, national and international events. Planet X Ireland, based in Blyry Industrial Estate, Athlone, are the exclusive supplier of Planet X Carbon Bikes and Titanium frame bikes to the Irish market. While maintaining a low cost and high quality model to the Irish and international market, they also bring household brand names such as SRAM, Shimano, Elite Trainers, FSA Vision, Sidi shoes and Salice helmets, plus a massive range of Team Edition clothing. For more information on Planet X Ireland visit www.planetxireland.com or contact 090 6486947.