Felix English relishing Olympic debut after 'unbelievably stressful two years'

The Irish Omnium pair of Felix English and Mark Downey arrive in Tokyo on the back of a gruelling few years

Track cyclist Felix English during a Tokyo 2020 Team Ireland announcement. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

The only problem with straining every sinew to make the Olympic Games is that it can sometimes come to be an end in itself rather than the foundation level for something even higher again.

There’s no way of measuring this. You can monitor training regimes and food intake, prepare yourself mentally, but there is no actual gauge with a needle that you can tap with your finger before stepping into a ring or onto a track.