Focused Rohan happy going it alone on fast lane to glory

MARK Rohan lives the life of a professional athlete but he remembers how it was before a motorbike accident left him with four broken bones in his back, four compound fractures of his right leg, a bone broken on his left foot, four broken ribs, a torn Aorta, a broken sternum and a broken clavicle.

When he thinks about facing into a couple of hours’ training in the cold and the rain, the Westmeath man focuses on the positives in his lifestyle. “I can relate to so many people from a GAA background or Sunday club soccer, going out as a young lad and partying and those kind of things,” he smiles.

“I’m 32 and I have a good lot of experience about what it’s like not to be an athlete so I can appreciate where I am now and I am grateful for the opportunity I have. The majority of my friends dread work, but outside work they have sport. I get to do it full-time. I often think about sitting in front of that desk (in the ESB office) inputting data and Joe Duffy blaring. I was ready for the loony bin so I won’t complain about training.”