KFitt Athletic, Kilrush, interviews Aoife Cooke and her coach, John Starrett. Aoife is a Cork native, National Marathon Champion and one of Ireland’s best prospects for the Tokyo Olympics. We had the chance to chat with Aoife about her marathon journey.  

On Sunday 23rd April, Aoife Cooke won the Cheshire Elite Marathon and secured the qualifying time for the Tokyo Olympics. Aoife’s story is an inspirational one. At the age of 17, Aoife took up a US scholarship at Arkansas Tech University. Unfortunately, just as her hopes and dreams of Olympic stardom began to bear fruit, they were shattered. Overtraining and undereating led to a series of horrendous pelvic fractures. Doctors diagnosed Aoife with osteopenia (weak bones).  Heartbroken, Aoife returned to Cork, believing she’d never run again.   

But champions overcome adversity… Years later, after undergoing strength training and improving her nutrition, Aoife laced up her shoes and went for a jog. Fast forward a few years to the start line of the Cheshire Elite Marathon and 2:28:36 later, Aoife broke the tape to take the win and smash the Olympic qualifying time.   Throughout the dark years, Aoife fought the demons of doubt and fear and rose again. While working 30+ hours a week as a personal trainer, she ran twice a day, banging out 100+ miles a week. 

Around the globe, thousands tuned in to watch Aoife’s incredible win. People and businesses have asked how they can support Aoife on her Olympic journey and beyond. After a short break, Aoife will hit the roads again and plans to head over to the US for altitude and warm weather training so that she’ll line up in Sapporo on the 7th August in peak condition, ready to battle the heat, humidity, and competition.

In this episode we speak to Head of athletic performance for Clare GAA, Rob Mulcahy. We discuss the challenges facing the club player in these uncertain times and how they can structure their season to optimise performance.