Heffernan ready for high life as Mexico test awaits
Last season could hardly have gone any better for the Cork athlete who posted his Olympic qualifying standard exactly a year ago in China and went on to walk under the time in every outing subsequently, culminating in sixth place at the world championships in Osaka.
And he could hardly have asked for a better start to 2008 than a new national record for 5k at the Woodies DIY Irish Indoor championships in Belfast.
Since then he has been back to Spain to train with world and Olympic silver medallist Francisco Javier (Paco) Fernandez, at semi-altitude near his home, which is situated high up in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
When he returned to his family in Cork, he spent a lot of his time in an altitude tent to prepare for the altitude at Chihuahua.
“The fact that the race is at altitude makes it that much more difficult,” Ray Flynn, who oversees his training sessions in Ireland, said.
“And then this is a packed field. We are looking at athletes from over 20 nations including the three-time world champion, Jefferson Perez, “Paco”, and of course the home boy, Eder Sanchez, who finished fourth — not too far ahead of Robert — in Osaka.
“Having said that, Robert is in the best form of his life. He had a good training camp at low altitude in Spain, where he trained with “Paco” and he has done everything right. But what we are looking for in Mexico is a good, solid performance because at this moment the focus in on next August and Beijing.
“We have the world cup in Russia in May which would be the next priority. We will have Olive Loughnane in the women’s 20k and Jamie Costin and Colin Griffin in the 50k as well at that meeting.”
Ailish McSweeney returns to the top flight this weekend when she competes in the 60m at the world indoor championships in Valencia. Two years ago she roomed with Derval O’Rourke when her Leevale clubmate stunned the world with a succession of record-breaking performances to win the 60m hurdles title.
Soon after that her form took a dip but she is now returning to heady heights that saw her win a silver medal in the 100m at the World Universities championships in Turkey. She is coached by former international hurdler Sean Cahill and his wife Terri (nee Horgan) who still holds the national long jump record.
“She has come off some very good performances,” Sean Cahill said. “She won the Irish title and, after that, was just one 100th of a second outside the A standard for the world championships when she went to Athens.
“Her blocks slipped in Leipzig and she went close to the standard again in Ghent so everything is falling into place and hopefully it will all come together in Valencia because she is due a change of luck. In her recent races she was over anxious — maybe panicking a bit — but she is certainly ready to run a big race and we are all looking forward to the outdoor season.”
She will be joined by James Nolan on our smallest team for the world indoor championships. Nolan, who recently moved to Clonliffe Harriers, competes in the 1,500m — a race in which Marcus O’Sullivan won three gold medals in the past. Nolan went to within a 10th tenth of a second of the Corkman’s record for 1,000m at last month’s Stockholm indoor meeting.
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