So having quit my job and become a full time athlete based in
Teddington, London, I thought I should try to be productive with my time and
start a monthly blog. For those of you who have never heard of me
before, the article below was recently published in Athletics Weekly and
gives my back story of how I got to where I am now. I hope you enjoy the
read. Until next time, happy training!!
I imagine you do not know anything about me, not many people outside of
Northern Irish athletics do. I have not won any Olympic medals, broken any
world records or even competed at a major European championships, not yet at
least. My name is Paul Pollock, 27, and I am the current Irish half marathon
and marathon champion. I was 14th at this year’s London marathon and
as of 2 weeks ago I came 21st overall and 2nd European in
the World Athletics Championships for the marathon in Moscow. I achieved all of
this while working full time as an A+E doctor in the Royal Hospital, Belfast.
It was a windy Winter night some 10 years ago now when my brother Conor
first forced me to race for the first time, and yes forced is the correct word.
Having been quite a pudgy kid throughout school I had no real desire to push
either my mind or body to its limit. Growing up my parents had always said that
everyone needs a sport and so throughout my school years I had tried my hand at
most activities but never really excelled in any. That was until that first
race. Having never trained or ran any great distance I was as surprised as my
brother was when I completed the Monaghan 5k road race as first U20 in a time
of 17.30, nothing amazing by anyone’s standard considering most parkruns are
won these days in a time sub 16. But still, it was quick enough for my brother
to drag me up to his running club Abbey AC the following week. Looking back I
remember how much I hated those first few months. There is nothing glamorous
about throwing up after a couple of minutes running nor is there anything
positive to be taken from being beaten by athletes greater than 3 times my age.
Little did I know that those people running past me in those sessions, were
shaping me into becoming one of the best distance runners in the country and
soon that they would become like a second family to me.
My coach in those early days was a man known as Bobby Rea, an inspiring
energetic coach who was quite the statsman when it came to anything athletics
related. As coach and founding member of Abbey AC he lived and breathed
athletics and it was he who first taught me the joy of running and the
happiness that it can bring. Having trained for 6 months I managed to make the
World Junior Cross country championships where I finished in the 100s. A number
of months later and I had competed at the Commonwealth Youth games in Melbourne
where I finished 4th in the 1500. I was starting to believe that
anything might be possible. Sadly just as things were beginning to come
together and I was getting ready to make the next step, Bobby passed away after
a sudden unexpected illness. Things were tough for everyone involved in Abbey
AC. Some athletes faded into the distance, others tried to keep training but
for whatever reason no one ever reached the heights which they had achieved
with Bobby as coach. The sport of running once again drifted out of my life
while I concentrated on my studies in medicine at Belfast. Four years passed where I would run
occasionally to keep fit but doing nothing serious. However, I always knew that
I had never reached my potential and that if ever I had the opportunity I might
be able to achieve something special.
I graduated as a doctor in 2010 and by luck in my first year of work I
became friends with a triathlete Johnny Boylan. Our 2 week holiday break in the
medical rota happened to coincide and when he asked if I wanted to travel to
Lanzarote with his triathlete club I jumped at the chance. While running across
the volcanic rocks under the scorching sun I fell in love with running all over
again. I had decided that if ever I was going to be an athlete, with the London
Olympics the following year, this was the time. I had made my mind up. I was to
become a runner.
So I had decided, with no coach and still quite unfit, that I would take
a year out of medicine to try and get to the Olympic Games, the pinnacle of
athletics in this world. I had no doubt in myself that I had the ability and
talent, what I was lacking was a coach and group who I trusted in and who
believed in me. I emailed tens of universities in America and understandably
for a runner with a 15.30 pb the answer was always the same. Thanks for your
email but we’re not interested. My older brother Noel, coincidentally the
current GB athletics team doctor and previous runner in his own right (3.44
1500m), put me in touch with a UK based coach Andy Hobdell. He was a man I had
never heard of and to be honest I was quite dubious that things would work out.
However at this stage I had one month of work left before my career break and I
still had no plans of who would be coaching me or even in what country I would
be based. Andy Hobdell it would have to
be. Little did I know that this would be the best decision I could ever make.
Andy is a no nonsense coach with quite possibly the best distance
training group at least in the UK. Unfortunately in that year out after having
placed a disappointing 16th in the European Cross Country, I injured
my knee two weeks later. The injury required surgery and rehab meant
essentially no proper running for the next 5 months. The dream of competing in
London was well and truly over. Back to medicine I went in August of 2012. I
clearly remember that instead of competing I was stuck in work during that
glorious Saturday evening for UK athletics. This was not how I wanted to hang
up my racing shoes. I sat down with my coach and worked out a plan until Rio.
My first year plan was to get strong, to do as many miles as I could whilst
working the ridiculous hours that junior doctors occasionally have to do. It’s
no exaggeration that for days on end I was waking up early, running 5 miles
into work, doing a 13 hour shift and then running 10miles home again. Day after
day, week after week. Patience and consistency is Andy Hobdell’s motto and as
the weeks turned into months I was getting stronger than I ever imagined
possible at the beginning of the year.
I’m always asked how do I run so much, do I not get bored. Through
running I’ve been fortunate enough to see places and meet people I would never
have had a chance to otherwise. From the oxygen deprived heights of Kenya to
the rocky beaches of Lanzarote. From being chased by dogs in the Chilean Andes
to being cheered at by schoolkids in Malaysia. From the scorching heat of Melbourne
to the snow capped mountains of New Zealand. Running has provided me with
memories and friends that I will never forget. I may not be able to tell you
what I did for the rest of the day but for whatever reason I could tell you
every part of a run I did 5 years ago as if it were yesterday.
My first venture into marathon territory was October 2012 in Dublin. I
had no idea what to expect. My longest run in the lead up was 20miles. This was
definitely going to be the unprofessional way to run a marathon. I was always a
bit of an optimistic runner when it came to pace judgement. In my naivety I
believed that steady 5 min miling was possible. After leading for the first
10miles I hit a very firm wall at 20miles finishing in 2.16.30. More work was
to be done but I had ran the Commonwealth time for Northern Ireland and also
the World Championships qualifying time. Unfortunately Athletics Ireland
released their own standards a number of months later with a 2.13 qualifying
standard required. All of a sudden the London Marathon was on the cards and
having had time off after Dublin it would be a rush against time to get to the
startline fit and in sub 2.13 shape. Once again in London I went off strong,
perhaps foolishly strong but I was chasing 2.13 and it needed to be an all or
nothing effort. In the end it comes down to me not being ready or fit enough. I
ran 2.17.10 after a fast first half and hitting that wall again at the 20 mile
mark. Thankfully Athletics Ireland decided to take a chance and selected me for
the World Championships, Moscow. However, like before I was on a break after
London having resigned myself to not being selected and with only 11 weeks
until the race it was going to be a big ask for me to be fit, especially as I
was still working some crazy shift patterns in A+E. It’s a testament to Andy
Hobdell that he got me as fit as he did.
There is no feeling like the morning of a marathon, especially when
you’re up against the best in the world. The nerves, the dreaming of what you
might run, the anticipation. I’ve always said nerves are just a sign of what
you believe you can achieve and that morning before Moscow I was nervous. A man once
said ‘to live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is
all’. Through racing I feel alive. There is no bullshit, no time for fake
personalities and nowhere to hide. At some point you will crack, either your
body or your mind. You accept that, just as every other competitor does, and
that’s what unites you. I have much more respect for a 90minute 10k runner than
someone who is too afraid to try. The key is to try to time it so that the
finish line is the point at which you break. I ended up coming 21st
in the marathon, 10 seconds off my pb and taking some good scalps. Taking into account
that I ran that whilst working full time on erratic shift patterns, with
essentially no support from anyone outside friends and family, it bodes well
for the future. I left my job 2 days before I
left for Moscow. All being well I won’t be going back until after I see the
sights of Rio. This world is a place for your dreams to become
reality. Pick your goal. Aim for it relentlessly, unwaveringly and one day you
might just be lucky enough for it to come true. The only thing stopping you is
yourself.
