European indoor champion Sarah Healy has stated her intention to give the longer distances a try, and will run her first championship 5000m at next week’s European Athletics Championships in Birmingham.
Healy has competed predominately in the 1500m in recent years, but claimed an impressive European U18 double back in 2018, winning both the metric mile and 3000m in Gyor.
Seven years later, Healy was back on the top of the podium, again over 3000m, at the European indoor championships in Apeldoorn, becoming the first Irish woman to do so.
Few manage to convert underage success into senior glory, but Healy achieved it. It was however a journey that wasn’t without its challenges, and the 25-year-old felt none of her competitors resented her historic win in the Netherlands.
“No one begrudged me a win because I think they’re like ‘she’s probably served her time of bad ones’,” Healy told Ciara Mageean as part of RTÉ Sport’s build-up coverage for the European Athletics Championship.
With strong Ballina connections, she even compared her European gold to Mayo’s All-Ireland win.
“I’d had a few disappointments, so I think it’s kind of like with Mayo winning,” the Monkstown native joked.
Healy switched training set-ups in 2022, moving from Ireland to Manchester to be coached by Jenny Meadows and Trevor painter of M11 Trackclub, the pair behind the success of Olympic 800m champion Keely Hodgkinson.
As the tricolour was raised in Apeldoorn there were tears in the eyes of her training partners, who despite competing in red, white and blue held the green, white and gold aloft as Healy stood on the podium.
Healy admitted finding such relationships in the sport is hard.
“It’s been amazing obviously especially because I was on my own here in Ireland before and then just making loads of friends that are also my training partners, I guess it’s pretty rare.
“It was so nice, because I think in the footage you could see Erin (Wallace) and Georgia (Bell) especially and they were just so happy for me.”
2025 was a successful year for Healy.
Not only did she win her first senior medal indoors but she went on the make her first global final at the World Championships in Tokyo seven months later, where she ended up tenth – a solid performance, but one that at the time she said: “I know I can race better than that. Obviously, I’m still proud of the progress but I’d like to have a better day on the world final day.”
Of her 2025 breakthrough season, that also saw her claim a diamond league win and lower her personal best for the 1500m to 3:57.15, Healy explained everything just clicked.
“Last year was so good and everything just happened really well and it almost came easily.”
In 2026 she has taken a different approach, revealing a troubled winter season of injury that saw her miss the indoors.
“I was injured for a lot of the winter so that was difficult and then I missed indoors which was a shame because I do love racing indoors but I changed my approach a bit this year.
“I felt like last year my best running was at the start of the season and I was really hanging on by the time I got to Worlds which was not ideal.
“This year I wanted to change it around, so I was coming into form at the right time, which I hope I am. It is a little hard as well because in the early season races you’re like ‘oh no I’m not really where I need to be.’”
Sarah Healy opened her season with a 5000m in Rome and will compete in the event in Birmingham
A change of tact, whether due to injuries or to peak for championships, is evident.
Healy has raced only four times this year and has made one notable change, competing over 5000m for the first time on the track in her first race of the season in Italy.
“I also tried a 5k this year just to see what that was like, which was tough, but it’s been different… It’s been hard and challenging. I think it will probably work out for me or I hope it will.”
Head versus heart decisions are an age-old dilemma and it is one Healy is currently grappling with.
She is entered in both the 5000m and 1500m in Birmingham and intends to double up, one of only two Irish athletes who will do so in an individual event at the championship.
After Birmingham? That is undecided, but she aims to compete in the event that suits her best in the future – whatever that might be.
“I think everyone wants to be a 1500-metre runner, and so do I.
“I’m certainly not finished with that because I love it and I’ve put a lot of effort into it, but I guess people have been telling me for years to give it a go.
“I want to compete in the event where I’m going to be the most competitive on the world stage and I thought this year was a good year to try with it being Europeans.
“I think at Europeans I might end up in both, which will be difficult but exciting.
“I’m undecided (on the future)… The 1500m is definitely more fun, but I want to race where I’m going to be the best or going to be able to be my best, so we’ll see.”
The decision to contest the 12.5-lap race is sound.
She is ranked third on season’s best this year, with only Maureen Koster of the Netherlands and Nadia Battocletti, who won both the 5000m and 10000m at the last edition of these championships, ahead of her on this year’s rankings.
Whereas in her first love, the 1500m, she will come in ranked 11th on her form this year.
The schedule offers the perfect opportunity to give both events a try.
A straight final in the 5000m on day two of the championships means three full days rest before – hopefully – two rounds of the 1500m on the final two days of competition.
Despite the busy schedule, Healy has the intention to participate fully, she is finished being a spectator.
“I really want to be competitive it’ll be my first time racing a 5k at a championship so that is a little daunting but I do feel prepared.
“I want to be competitive and like fighting for a medal and just making sure I put myself in it and then the same in the 1500, I want to qualify for the final.
“In 2024 I was in the final but I felt like I was watching the final so I was watching you (Ciara Mageean) win, but I was a ways back just observing… I’d like to make the final and then this time be less of an observer more of a participant in it if I’m there.”
Watch the European Athletics Championships on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player from 10-16 August.