Mark English

[upbeat music] All right.

Mark English, thank you so very much for joining us on the podcast.

And I suppose we're a couple of weeks removed from, you know, one of the, if not the, I'm sure it is, the biggest achievements of your career.

How's things?

And I'm not sure you would change anything.

I mean, life is life and y- you've achieved what you achieved, maybe when you were supposed to achieve it.

But do you ever consider what you might have achieved applying what you know now to, you know, 2016 Mark English?

Oh, yeah, you definitely do wonder it.

No, I mean, it's...

Uh, I suppose w- w- we're inundated in the media with, with, with the successes of, you know, the GAA and, and soccer and, and rugby so, but athletics I suppose doesn't usually get that coverage, but, uh, there's been a sea change in that in the last three, four years with the, with the relay teams, with, uh, Rashida, with, you know, Mark English, all of that.

So it's got a completely new focus on athletics.

Um, it's, it's resulted in massive increase in our own membership to, you know, the point where we have waiting lists now.

I mean, look at, I get it with my own club there with Dubh Linn Barbourfield coaching out there, and you know you want these people to be able to play for Dubh Linn Barbourfield senior football, uh, uh, Hurling in, in a couple of years' time.

So it's the same thing here with Innistrack.

I get a great buzz that, you know, in 15, 20 years' time, these people could be the next, as, as, as Dave was saying there, Rasheed Adelekue or Mark English, whoever it is.

And of course, look at...

We have Rasheed doing so well.

We've, we've Mark English, Kate O'Connor.

Um, Andrew Cosgran took a medal as well, and there's so much more athletes that are actually, you know, really rising to, to, to the moment and, and producing perf- performances at a really high international level.

What's it like being involved in, as a coach in that team or just being, being involved in, in the whole setup?

You know, there's like these kind of world record holders are like, "Go on, you three there.

We're waiting for Mark English.

We're waiting for Ra- Here's Rasheed's mum.

Come on over here," you know?

But yeah, during the week, kind of just staying in touch with that aerobic system.

That's really interesting because for someone who follows a lot of pro athletes, Justin Rinaldi and the Mark English, the Peter Ball, the 800 specific people and the M11 track club, they do seem to be flat on their back a lot of the time in training.

And I just assumed that You know, for people off your level, there would be a lot more of that training that is hidden from Strava that you just don't see.

But you're saying the opposite.

I mean, Sijadi, Arop, Wanyoni, and then, and then Brandon.

And, and the kid Mark English, not a kid, but Irish guy, Mark English, got sixth.

He had won-- Did he win the Commonwealths? The Europeans or the Commonwealths, you know, sort of surprising.

And he's an older guy, but 1:42.78-

I don't know

...

Mark English, Mark English, he's, he's 33.

Yeah.

Right, the Finn Valley Voice, they have a picture of...

European 800 metre gold medal winner Mark English.

That was an amazing achievement, isn't it? I actually kind of forget how brilliant that was for a moment.

He and his homecoming, great crowds.