1,531 days to the Olympics… in Japan in 2020.
79 days to the Rio Olympics and the fever is real.
Last week, RTÉ began their Road to Rio series which is documenting the lives of 11 Irish athletes in the build-up to the summer games.
Michael Conlan – Boxing
Robert Heffernan- Walk
Ryan Seaton and Matthew McGovern – 49er class sailing
Fiona Doyle – Swimming
Paul Pollock- Marathon
Natalya Coyle – Modern Pentathlon
Sarah Lavin – 100m Hurldes
Cian O’Connor- Showjumping
Martyn Irvine – Track Cycling
Jack Woolley- Taekwando
The show got off to a groundbreaking start when teenage karate sensation Jack Woolley bravely came out as bisexual in the first episode.
What a hero @jackwoolley_tkd is https://t.co/iXNAD62BRU
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) May 12, 2016
The second slot airs on Wednesday night at 8.30pm and is set for another insightful look into the lives of Ireland’s hopefuls.
Fiona Doyle – whose one-arm pull-ups last week put us all to shame – features heavily in a number of poignant scenes where the family of the Limerick native are roaring her to the Olympics. Life on the road as an athlete is tough though as the swimmer would testify to.
Then you have Michael Conlan.
The man who is enjoying the pressure of bringing home gold, the man who is warming up for Brazil against some of the best fighters in the world – his preparation is intense.
A snippet from Wednesday’s programme follows the Belfast boxer the night before his historic world championship win and documents the thoughts of the fighter ahead of such big occasions.
Even a quick insight into his breakfast diet…
