'I couldn't believe that I actually made the team, it felt so surreal'- Laois Olympian Alanna Fitzpatrick

Alanna Fitzpatrick is preparing to represent Ireland at the upcoming Paris Olympics but as well as that she'll represent Portarlington and Laois when she's wearing the Ireland Rugby Sevens jersey.

Speaking to the Leinster Express/ Laois Live, Alanna spoke about how she got into the sport of rugby, how she suffered an injury which nearly ended her rugby career at a young age, her reaction to the news that she'd be chosen in the Irish Olympics squad as well as how she's so thankful for the support that her home town of Portarlington has given her ahead of her trip to Paris.

How she got into rugby?

"I basically started when I was like around 12 or 13. My brother played since he was five or six but my dad always said I'd love you to try play rugby so he brought me out one evening and just said look try it and see if you like it and if you don't, you don't but just give it a shot so I went out one evening and then I never looked back and I've just been playing since," she said.

Biggest Inspiration?

"I'd say my brother because he just loved the game and then I suppose my father as well and like my mother for the drive they gave me for it as well seeing how enjoyable it was," Fitzpatrick said.

Injury Setback

"I got injured at the end of 2022. I suffered a bad injury in my foot and it was a long period of just rehab and stuff like that. I missed a lot of underage stuff that I would have probably have got the chance to play and so I had to experience a bad injury especially at such a young age. That was kind of a big curveball that I thought I probably wouldn't have been able to come back and play again if I didn't have the surgery and do the rehab and push myself every day and do gym and running. So that was kind of the big curveball that I had and that was one of the most challenging things that I’ve experienced and then I just overcame it.

"At times you don't think you will (come back) but you actually do because I just watched rugby all the time and then I went to the gym every day when I couldn't do much and just did other exercises that I worked around my foot and just kept going every day until I could get back running and playing on the pitch.

"When I look back at it now I probably wouldn't be the person I was if I didn't have that injury to learn from especially as playing a full-time sport now like injuries are so common just like niggles and stuff because you train all the time that I feel taught me the best lesson and how to overcome them," Alanna said.

How she got into the sport of Rugby Sevens?

"So I played 15s the whole time and I was injured for when the sevens for my age was kind of around that I could play. I didn't get the opportunity to play under age but I just played 15s coming back from my injury and stuff and was playing back in my clubs. I always got emails to come up to these camps so training camps I got asked to come in when I wasn't in school so like midterms and stuff. I would go there for two or three days,stay up there, do the camps and it was sevens and so I just did a few whenever, that's really just how I got into it. I only started at senior level from just going to a few training camps," she said.

Any crossover of both codes?

"It is quite different. With sevens you do have to have a lot of knowledge as well for it because it's such a quick game like everything's a lot quicker so you have to react quicker. Your break is less but like you still need your physicality and you still need good passing, you still need like your speed so like it is similar to 15s but it is quite different it's just that you use your speed a lot more in sevens than maybe 15s if that makes sense because you're constantly going for them seven minutes," the Irish Rugby Sevens star said.

Reaction to news that she was picked for the Olympics

"Oh, I was completely shocked like I couldn't believe that I actually made the team. It felt so surreal like I couldn't believe it for the whole day I was like is this actually true? But yeah it was just unbelievable and it was like nearly a tap on the back of your shoulder as well for just to keep getting yourself through that year and backing yourself and then when the moment came seeing that everyone else and your team backed you and your coaches backed you to be selected for the team," Alanna said.

Sporting ambitions post Olympics

"Definitely go back into sevens and you know make every World Series again and just keep pushing and becoming a better player like you're never going to be at your best so if you just keep thriving. I want to make sure that I keep growing each year for both 15s and sevens so I just want to grow as a player and just be that I can play both and keep improving," Fitzpatrick said.

Advice she would give for younger girls

"I definitely say just enjoy it. If you enjoy it, it's half the battle because there's obviously moments when it's really tough but you have to look at the enjoyable moments and why do you do it? The reward that you get for doing it there's like it's such a good feeling and it's so nice to be part of a team like you meet friends for life and it's just really homely. So that's why I definitely think you just have to enjoy it because the best part is when you're enjoying it, you play better and it's just better for the team," she said.

Support of her home town Portarlington

"Oh they've been wonderful. Honestly they've all made me feel so warm. It was such a nice feeling that my home was backing me and that the amount of support that they had for me was unbelievable. I still can't believe to this day how everyone just backs me and is so proud of me and just happy that I'm improving and got this big achievement so it makes my heart full that my hometown is just so proud of me," Alanna said

Biggest achievement outside of being chosen for Olympics?

"It would be when we won Gold in Perth. That feeling was just something that I'll cherish forever to experience with the girls and just the atmosphere and the support we got from it. It was just so memorable to have and such a nice thing to see as well," she ended.