BY DÁIRE BONNAR
As he gets back to full fitness, Sean McGinley is hoping to put his injury woes behind him and have a consistent 2025 season.
It hasn’t been the easiest year for the Finn Valley athlete, but there have been glimpses of what he can do when everything clicks, most recently before Christmas.
The Glenswilly man stormed to success in the National Novice Cross Country 6k in Tramore in December, winning in a time of 18:46, 18 seconds ahead of An Ríocht AC’s Oisin Murray.
It was his first time competing at that level and while preparation coming into the event wasn’t perfect, he won well to earn himself the Donegal News December Sports Personality of the Month award in conjunction with Brian McCormick Sports & Leisure.
“I raced two weeks before at the National Seniors and that was a desperate race, everything that could go wrong seemed to and that knocked the confidence.
“I had a niggle in the calf about a week out before the Seniors and that knocked the confidence and I was very cautious.
“It was a tough week and I tried to reset but then I went into the Novice race with no pressure which might’ve been the best thing in the end.
“But on the day in Tramore I felt brilliant, the course suited me and with a lap to go I wounded up the pace and I kept pushing and everything seemed to click.
“It was a lovely end to the season because it was a shaky enough year in-season, different injuries and results didn’t quite go my way so I wasn’t sure what to think going into the race, maybe a top three, but I wasn’t sure about the win.
“It’s definitely in the top three or four races of my career, it holds a lot to me with the build-up and how I had a few rocky races so if it had went bad the confidence could have been in a serious state.”
It was a real confidence booster at a time when the McGinley admits he was lacking in it and he understands how the mental aspect of athletics is so important.
“It was a great lift for the head and I needed that, to know I still have it in me and I shouldn’t have doubted that but when some races don’t go your way then you do start to think negatively.
“The mental side of it is definitely a big thing and it probably is under looked, it is highlighted nowadays but it was the first time I’ve had to come to terms with it.
“It’s something I probably wouldn’t have looked at when I was younger but when you don’t have those setbacks like injury then you might only have the odd bad race but you’re out again the next weekend.
“There’s no time to dwell or think on it but the last track season I raced about two or three times then got injured and in the cross country I didn’t have a lot of preparation.
“I needed a win, I needed something to put a positive spin on it, at least you can do that when you’re training and staying consistent, but that kept breaking down every few months and it was probably the lowest I’ve been in running in a long time and to get the win just reminded me that I am at a certain level.”
Injuries have been a problem since but he is back training and looking at a couple of other events to participate in and branch out.
McGinley competed at the European U23 Championships in Finland last year in the 3000m steeplechase, while he is currently eyeing up some longer distance races along with some attempts at the triathlon.
Nearly finished his third year of PE & Biology in DCU, a summer to focus on getting back to his best will be the initial aim before the big competitions come into focus.
“I got an MRI recently and was told it was a stress reaction in the calf, I was misdiagnosed and I had taken ten weeks off but I went to Santry and I was told it was a low grade and two weeks out would have done me.
“But I wouldn’t look back at it in too much frustration, I got ten weeks of consistent training of swimming and biking and I hope that translates over to the track.
“I’ll look to give the triathlons a go considering I’ve done the work and the next race will be a 10k in the start of May.
“I do see myself as a 5k man in an ideal world but the steeplechase is a different avenue to look into and I’m happy I done that, but with the calf injury it probably isn’t the smartest to do with the extra strain.
“It’s no harm to give the triathlon a go and it’ll be nice to mix it up a bit and get the consistency, if I can get that there then I think results will follow.
“The big one this year is probably looking to qualify for the European U23s but it’ll be a tough ask with this build up.
“Another goal will be the National Seniors in August so I should have enough time to get the consistency and I’d like to have a good race at that.
“But the big goal will be to make the Euro Cross Country Championships in Portugal in December, I’ve the most time to prepare for that and I’ve done that before so hopefully I can get back to that, I think I’m capable of making the top three of the National U23s.”
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