Jennifer Lehane's journey to the 2024 Olympics was well documented; a late arrival to the boxing game, the Meath woman hit the ground running and managed to represent her country on the biggest stage.
A former taekwondo European champion, Lehane took up boxing while studying in DCU as a method of keeping fit, and it proved quite the decision.
Irish elite champion within a year and three years later, Olympic qualified and Paris bound in a team of ten heading off to the Games.
Kellie Harrington was the only of the group to make it to the podium, as the Dubliner won her second gold medal, however, Lehane equipped herself quite well on her maiden bow, unlucky to come up against the eventual gold medal winner Chang Yuan.
Lehane achieved her goal of reaching the Olympics, however, once she experienced the sport on the biggest stage, she has now put new objectives in place, with the Los Angeles Olympics very much in mind.
But first, the elite level competition continues a bit closer to home, in Liverpool next week for the start of the new-look world championships.
It’s been quite the year for Ireland’s amateur elite as they have sat back and watched as the association had to move to a new governing body in order to guarantee a path to the next Olympic Games.
Lehane will again box in the bantamweight division, and following some high-quality sparring and ideal preparation, she is eyeing a place on the podium.
"The last year was a very busy year with all the qualifying, and then we had numerous training camps with internationals," said Lehane.
"And we went to China in February. China will be the top female team currently, especially after the Paris Olympics, and so we got plenty of really great experience there.
"I was sparring with a few different girls, including the 50kg Olympic champion. So even to get that experience going into fights and tournaments like the world championships coming up is just vital.
"We were in Sheffield for a ten-day camp, again, getting plenty of experience with a number of different boxers from different countries. So feeling confident now going into the next tournament.
"That's the goal," added Lehane, when asked about podium aspirations. "My first fight is next Thursday and hopefully going forward from that we'll get onto a medal stage."
Lehane admitted, however, that coming down from the Olympic experience was not easy and, like many athletes, she took a while to come to terms with the post-Paris blues.
"We did a few workshops and we got that help before Paris, before the Olympics, to say that you are going to feel low after this. We've heard all the post-Olympic blues and although we were so prepared for it, it still hit me like a ton of bricks.
"It was all this training, all this momentum for these two weeks, and then all of a sudden it's over and you're kind of sitting at home and everyone's going back to work. Life goes on. It was very difficult at the time.
"I was kind of dealing with an injury in my calf as well, so I wasn't able to kind of just plop myself back into training full-time. It took a while to get the rehab and get everything right with that, but I surrounded myself with great people.
"My family and friends really helped me get through that, and now I just look back on it with brilliant memories."
Three years out from LA, Lehane is taking all this experience, especially from the Paris Games, and mapping out new goals and allowing herself to dream big.
The Olympics also showed Lehane that she belonged in such company and that is now helping to push towards Worlds and other successes on the road to 2028.
"Looking back at it, the dream was to get to the Olympics and there were certain days I'd wake up and say, 'oh, am I capable of doing this?’" she said.
"Once it all worked out and I qualified, even coming up against the Olympic champion in the first round, as unfortunate as it was, kind of proved to myself that I did belong in the ring with the best of the best.
"Although I was beaten, it wasn't a standout kind of loss. It was kind of a way in my mind to show myself that I'm among the best of the world.
"Even seeing Kellie Harrington going on to win the gold, do you know, bigger dreams kind of are set in my mind now.
"There's three years out to the next Olympic Games, and I'm confident that I'll continue to develop as a boxer, gain more international experience, and hopefully medal in the future."
Lehane believes that she is continually improving and is now much better prepared for boxing in the big tournaments, with consistent routines helping her to prepare, and importantly, to control the mental side of things ahead of stepping into the ring.
"One of the goals that I had put out for myself coming up to this world championships was trying to tackle the nerves of first-day fights or first-day spars," she explained.
"I was trying to replicate a first day of competition at each of the camps. So my first day of sparring in Germany, I was treating it like a first day of competition.
"My first day of sparring in Sheffield, I was treating it as first day of competition. So I've gone through that twice, the first day kind of nerves, so hopefully the third time...
"Now, my first fight in Liverpool, you know, recognize the nerves and be able to cope with them and be confident in myself."
