by Perri Williams
Kilkenny native Mary Fitzgerald will compete in her second Paralympics one week from now in the F40 shot putt. There will be a marked contrast between her experience in Paris and that of Tokyo in 2021. Paris will be a “complete” Paralympic experience. Athletes can mingle, chat to each other, wave to a stadium full of spectators and know members of their family or friends will be in the audience. There will be an opening ceremony and a closing one too. Colourful, ambient, friendly, a community experience - just normal. Its not that Fitzgerald would have felt that Tokyo was nugatory or inconsequential. Far from it. In a recent interview Mary indicated that “Walking out into the Olympic stadium wearing the Irish singlet was an incredibly proud moment that I will never forget. I was proud to make the final, despite the unpredictable build up and sometimes unusual preparations for the Games. Tokyo was also where I became a Paralympian, which was a dream of mine from a young age, so it holds a special place in my heart.”
Things are different this time. In those three years Fitzgerald who competes with Gowran AC in Kilkenny has improved her personal best in her signature event the Shot Putt by a substantial margin. In Tokyo she finished 7th in the Women’s Shot Putt F40 category with a best throw of 7.79. In May this year Fitzgerald threw a personal best of 8:87m at the Paula Radcliffe Stadium in Loughborough. An improvement of one meter ten centimetres from Tokyo and over a half a meter better than her previous personal best.
Her selection for Paris may not have been confirmed until last month but the Kilkenny native knew with a performance such as that, she was in the running for selection. She explained to me at the National Track and Field this summer that the selection process was different, and it is ultimately decided by the Irish Paralympic Committee with overall numbers on the team capped.
Some things have changed in her preparation for this summer’s games. One of the biggest catalysts has been a change of coach. She is currently coached by Paul Wilson, a name synonymous with some of the world’s biggest names in shot putt. Coach to Chase Jackson, the American who is the reigning world indoor and outdoor champion. Also coach to Scott Lincoln the British national champion and commonwealth bronze medallist and a host of other big names that have magnate to Wilson’s coaching group over the past few years. This is Wilson’s first time coaching a Paralympic athlete but the coaching methods he applies are no different. After all Mary Fitzgerald is an avid competitor in many Athletics Ireland competitions. She can be found on the startlists of Leinster and All-Ireland Championships, AAI games and more.
With most athletes having busy international schedules and shot putt being a technical event, it requires the presence of a coach more often than some running events. Wilson has circumvented this issue. Just as he does for Chase Jackson who resides in the USA, he set up an online session with Mary Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald is lucky to have a shot putt circle in her own garden. Three times a week she sets up a tripod and iPad through which Wilson can observe her throwing and deliver his feedback and coaching advice. It is an ingenious method that has served Chase Jackson and others well and it was work well for Fitzgerald too. Of course, she does travel to the UK for face-to-face sessions with Wilson too. Like all coaching relationships, it is built on trust and the knowledge that Mary must apply the programme herself on her “solo” days.
Coming into these games with a significant throw of 8.89m and ranking second overall on this year’s seasons best throws would surely inspire confidence in her ability to feature on the podium. However, each iteration of the games see’s the bar moving upwards. In Rio to medal would have meant a throw of 7.12m and that was just for bronze. In Tokyo a similar medal colour required a throw of 8.29m. Lara Baars (Netherlands) has the lead this season with a throw of 9.36m and while Fitzgerald does place second in ranking, there are other athletes like the 2021 Paralympic champion Renata Sliwinska (Poland) and Tokyo bronze medallist Lauritta Onya (Nigeria) who have thrown 9.35m and 9.02m respectively last year. It is all about getting it right on the day. Fitzgerald has taken some time off from her job as an Occupational Therapist with Enable Ireland to focus on these games. With more time to train and a world class coach, there is every indication that Fitzgerald can do well in a weeks’ time.
What started with an encounter with throwing on an induction day with the Irish Wheelchair Association back in 2000 has moved from a place on the Irish High-Performance squad since 2019 to two Paralympic Games. The trajectory with a lady as driven by Mary can only point upwards. It is worth mentioning that her house mate during her time in UCC - was none other than World and Olympic rowing champion Paul O’Donovan. Positive, driven people mixing with positive, driven people.
On her Paralympic Profile her philosophy is “Never tell me the sky is the limit when there are footprints on the moon." Let’s hope Mary gets her opportunity to plant her footprints on her moon in Paris.