Rohan goes flat out in search of London gold

Mark Rohan’s story is so engaging it could keep the spools of a recorder turning for hours but, this being Ireland, the conversation eventually wound its way around to the more humdrum topic of the weather on Thursday.

Arctic gusts and monsoon downpours are reviled by every athlete whose training obliges them onto the country’s highways and byways but the latest unseasonal chill is that bit harder to take for a hand-cyclist who is paralysed from the chest down.

‘For me, without movement of the legs for circulation, it’s very hard to stay warm,” Rohan explained. “During the endurance [training] phase you’ve got four hours on the road and facing four hours in that weather even just affects your mental state.”