When Daniel Lacey transfered to Clonliffe it was a big blow to them and an even bigger blow to us! Only joking! A true Clonliffe man, wears his heart on his sleeve, always gives of his best, now in the senior ranks and serves a truly exceptional pint of Guinness.
Bio: Daniel Lacey, 19 year old from Santry , middle distance athlete who is coached by Joe Cooper, the Clonliffe bar’s most valuable worker and Clonliffe’s most beloved member!
What age did you take up the sport of athletics and why? Took up athletics at about 11 with Fingallians as I had aspirations to be a sprinter but as I went into secondary school was forced into a move over to cConliffe from my schoolmates
When and why did you join Clonliffe Harriers? Joined at around 14 after a good year as a minor in St.Aidans under Alan O’Neill’s supervision and after a few months of persuasion from the Aidans lads I gave in and made the move over
What is your favourite training workout? 1k sessions in Trinity
And your least favourite? I enjoy most sessions but probably tempo runs are my least
What’s your favourite race / athletics meet? All Ireland schools track or National Cross country
What is your most cherished or proudest moment in athletics? (as athlete and/or coach) Winning the all Ireland schools 2k steeplechase as an inter was a very proud moment
What was your worst injury – and how did you get over it? Unfortunately I have had my fair share of injuries over the past couple years, but when at the start of 2018 I picked up a knee injury that put me out for about 9 months which was unfortunate as I was coming off a very strong XC season
(For a coach or seasoned athlete) What piece of advice would you give an aspiring athlete? Enjoy it and work hard
Do you have any memorable or funny story from Clonliffe Harriers that you could share? (the censorship board may review!) Basically carrying Ian Guiden home on the last night of the Seville trip this year was a memorable one , I am sure he would like to give his side of the story.
What’s your favourite meal? A. For competition: pasta B. Outside competition: pizza
Who is your sporting ‘hero’? (athletics or other) A. Irish: Wouldn’t say I have a hero but I get inspired by my teammates and people around me performing well. B. International: same as above
What’s your favourite…? A. Film : Parasite B. Song or Album: Too many to choose from C. Book: The Harry Potter books are the latest books I’ve read.
What’s your favourite holiday destination? Loved Budapest when I was there during the summer
What’s your favourite hobby / activity outside athletics? I like going for a game of football
If you were Seb Coe what changes would you implement to improve our sport? Certainly advertise it more and make it easier to watch races for the non hardcore fans
How would your non-athlete friends describe you? (in 3 words) An exceptional bar man
What is your next running / athletics goal? (whenever normality returns!) To run a few new Pbs in the next year or so on the track
How are you motivating yourself to continue training at these difficult times? Not being too strict on mileage and just running for as long and for as hard as I feel on any given day, some days I go for 20 minutes some days I go for 100 just depends how I feel.
