Rhasidat Adeleke believes that having so much to work on and improve gives her huge hope for the years to come.
The Tallaght native became the first Irish woman to run the 400m in under 50 seconds before the Olympics. She also holds seven individual Irish records across multiple distances and surfaces and contributed to two relay records in the women’s and mixed 4 × 400m events at the Paris Games.
There was great hope for Adeleke to win another gold for Ireland last summer, but it wasn't to be. Nevertheless, Ireland remains proud of her achievements.
Adeleke told RTÉ Sport's Greg Allen that ending the year on a personal low note because of her high expectations dissapointed her. However, now she appreciates her other achievements but will always rue the missed opportunity of not winning at the Olympics.
"I felt somewhat disappointed at how the season played out because I had such high expectations.
"Looking back on it now, I can appreciate what I did achieve, but I put a lot of the achievements aside because I focused on the main one—the Olympics.
RHASIDAT! 🥈
Soooo close!! We’re so proud of you @rhasidatadeleke 🥺 such an amazing race 🙌
📸 @sportsfile #TeamIreland @irishathletics pic.twitter.com/Fyc3O8fMCB
— Team Ireland (@TeamIreland) June 10, 2024
"Once I didn't achieve what I wanted to achieve at the Olympics, I kind of dismissed everything else I had done this year."
Despite the mixed year, Adeleke believes that having the opportunity to grow and learn new things in the future has her dreaming of brighter days.
The Tallaght native also believes that if she had already achieved all her goals, there would be little room for optimism despite her young age. It would be a matter of "what now," according to the talented runner.
"Knowing that there are so many things I have to work on, that is what gives me hope for the future.
"If I had competed at the Olympics and I was in my perfect form, my training was 110%, mentally I was 110%, everything was 110%, I'd be a little bit scared going into the future. Where do I go from here? I came fourth, and I don't see room for progression.
"But now, because I have so much to improve on and so much more to experience, I see that there is a lot I can do in the future. When it comes to 2028, I can see myself in a better position because of how much I have to improve."
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