YOUGHAL ATHLETE AMANDA CROTTY is poised to become the town’s first ever Paralympic runner. The 26 year-old runner surpassed the 5.20 A-Standard Paralympic qualification time when, running in an otherwise non-disabled field, she recorded 5.17 minutes for the 1,500 metres at the National Championships in Santry on August 7th. In acquiring her A-Standard, Amanda knocked 13 seconds off her personal best.

Amanda, who has been visually impaired from birth, is the only female -and one of only three in total- amongst Ireland’s track and field considerations for the 2012 games. She is now considered certain to represent her country in London. As a visually impaired runner, she competes whilst tethered to a guide, who must always remain behind the athlete.

The youngest of three girls and one boy, Amanda took up athletics aged 10. Her sparkling career has brought honours galore. In her earlier years she “did everything,”  as she recalls and her wide-ranging abilities brought her county and Munster honours in shot put, discus and All-Ireland cross country. In 2001 she took bronze in the Blind Sports European Athletics Championship Penthatlon (100 metres, 800 metres, long jump, shot put and discus).

In 2007 she was named Ireland’s Blind Sports Athlete of the Year, winning gold in the 800m and 1,500m at the May Games International in Dublin, before taking 1,500m gold in the 4th International Athletics Meeting for the Disabled in Tunisia.

Articulate and cheerful as she is determined, the athlete became an Irish international in August 2010 and helped Ireland to bronze in the Dutch Open Championships last April. On August 19th she will represent her country in the Czech Open Championships in Prague.

Amanda, who hopes eventually to become a physical therapist, uses special software to read books on computer and to surf the internet. She has described her school life as having been, “tough at times as my sight depreciated. I still did sports, including hurling and football, but athletics was my favourite.”

The Youghal star trains almost daily, dividing her regime between Cork Institute of Technology’s track, UCC’s sports field or at the Youghal Athletic Club facility. She derives inspiration from Catherina McKiernan, whose tenacity she greatly admires. “Catherina finished fourth many times but never gave up trying to improve and got there. She sets a great example,” believes Amanda.

New coach

Amanda associates her current success with acquiring a new coach last February. Peter Maher, Irish born but a former Canadian Olympic marathon runner, changed her training practice to enhance her strength by longer runs, but also altered her mind-set.  “He kept insisting I had the ability but that had to believe,” says Amanda. “Then suddenly it all came together for me.”

Still on a high a week later, Santry brought a joyful day that will forever be etched in her memory. “My mum was there and there were so many hugs and congratulations, it was wonderful” she recalls. Being essentially a mainstream athletic event she was “absolutely delighted” when congratulations poured in from luminaries like Togher and internationally successful walker Rob Heffernan and his similarly esteemed wife Marian, a 400m runner.

Meanwhile in a middle distance Paralympic discipline “dominated by Russians,” Amanda “needs to be doing around 4.57 for medals,” while one Russian has clocked 4.40. “Peter says I can do 4.50 so who’s to doubt him?!”she smiles. Who doubts Amanda either?