GRAND TOUR
Inside Rhasidat Adeleke’s Olympic Village experience from birthday cake for Sharlene Mawdsley to post-Games bash
Sonia O'Sullivan has advised her on what her first post-Olympics step ought to be
RHASIDAT ADELEKE has shared a snapshot into her time around the Olympic Village over the past fortnight.
The 21-year-old came agonisingly close to medalling in both the 400m individual final as well as the 4x400m women's relay showpiece.
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It was her debut Games having been controversially omitted from the Irish team that travelled to Tokyo three years previously.
So while it was tinged with sadness and a sense of so near yet so far, the entire experience will undoubtedly serve her well at the LA Games in 2028.
The bulk of her time spent in Paris' Olympic Village was clearly spent recuperating in between races so as to maintain optimum performance levels.
But there was the occasional moment of fun when her and teammates were able to take in what is an experience so few people get to live through.
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Sharlene Mawdsley's 26th birthday happened to fall on August 10, the day of that heartbreaking fourth-placed finish in the women's relay.
So amidst their tears the team did share a nice moment where they sang 'Happy birthday' while presenting her with a cake.
Another noteworthy snap Adeleke shared was a handwritten letter from an eight-year-old fan.
It evidently left her misty-eyed as the youngster described how much she looks up to the Dubliner and wished her well throughout the Games.
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Her sponsors Allianz arranged an end of tournament bash that she attended before returning to Texas to dive straight back into her training under by-now well-known coach Edrick Floréál AKA Coach Flo.
The Canadian's stock rose over the course of the Games since Adeleke's sprint teammate Julien Alfred took gold and silver in the 100m and 200m respectively.
RTE chief shares big screen view of Rhasidat Adeleke's Olympic final from famous Irish festival as crowd roar her on
The question now on every Irish fan's lips is what course he will map out for Adeleke to best continue her progression.
After that near-miss in her individual final, athletics legend Sonia O'Sullivan was unequivocal in her view that the sooner she gets back out on the track the better.
There are five more Diamond League meets in 2024.
The first will be in Lausanne in Switzerland on August 22 and the last in Brussels in September.
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Speaking on RTE, the Sydney 2000 silver medallist urged: "I think what will be interesting is how she reacts to this now, running wise, and how she goes in the relay tomorrow.
"There are five Diamond League races left. Does she run any of those? If I was her, I would."
Adeleke won a Diamond League event for the first time in Monaco on July 12.
She then came extremely close to breaking her own national record over 200m in London eight days later.
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