We talk to Wales’ first female track gold medallist at the Commonwealth Games in 32 years about making progress
The unbounded joy on Olivia Breen’s face was infectious. Having run the race of her life to win T37/38 100m gold at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, she had the Alexander Stadium crowd in the palm of her hand. Smiles lit up the faces of her family and friends, while strangers revelled in the electric atmosphere, equally invested in the moment.
Breen – a former world and Commonwealth long jump champion – burst on to the international scene and into the spotlight as an enthusiastic 16-year-old in London 2012, winning bronze as part of Britain’s 4x100m team (T35-38).
In Birmingham, the Welsh athlete won her first individual gold in the 100m. It was a quick sprint – the run of 12.83 was her second-fastest ever, in fact – but a performance which was a decade in the making.
“It was a surreal week and an amazing Games,” she reflects on her Commonwealth success. “Obviously having a crowd again and being able to race in front of my family and friends made me appreciate it so much more. It was just phenomenal. I was very confident going into the Games, but I just wanted to enjoy the whole experience. I would have been happy with any medal, but a gold medal was just ‘wow’. It was very emotional.
“Everything just came together after 10 years of hard work. Even since Tokyo [where she was third in the long jump and sixth in the 100m] although I was happy, I knew there was more to come, and I think having more self-belief has really helped.
“I’ve been lifting heavy in the gym and that has really paid off. I’ve also been working more on my stamina and getting my start right and we just nailed that in Birmingham.”
Olivia Breen (Mark Shearman)
The 26-year-old, who is coached by Aston Moore, has achieved personal bests in the 100m (12.76) and long jump (5.15/5.33w) in 2022. She relocated from London, where a Sky scholarship had enabled her to adopt a professional approach to training early on in her career, to Loughborough following the Rio Paralympic Games in 2016.
“I wanted to focus more on my long jump because I’d had such a bad Rio,” she explains, acknowledging that 12th place. “I said to myself, ‘Right, I’m going to change something, and if it doesn’t work, then at least I know I tried to do something about it’, and I’ve never looked back.
“Aston oversees everything. I think we have a really special bond. He understands how my body works. Some days, having Cerebral Palsy, he knows I’m having a bad day and he knows to adapt my training.”
With a training group that includes Abigail Irozuru and Ben Williams, in addition to Katarina Johnson-Thompson who linked up with Moore earlier this year, Breen is in good company.
She recalls a comment from Williams, which reminds her how far she’s come. “He said, ‘You’ve matured so much as an athlete and, as you’ve got stronger, your body now does what you want it to do’,” she says. “Six years ago, that would have been impossible. It would take me a long time to ‘get’ things and to get my body to do what I wanted it to do, but now I can, and it’s been really good to see that progression.
“I never thought I’d be able to lift 85kg in squats, but you have to believe you will get there, you just have to find a way and be patient with yourself.
“I’m in a really happy place. I’ve bought my first house and I feel a lot more settled, and I think that’s had a big impact. You’ve got to do what makes you happy.”
Olivia Breen (Getty)
Typical training week
Breen, who acknowledges the continued support of the National Lottery and adidas as being integral to her success, was Wales’ first female track gold medallist at the Commonwealth Games in 32 years. She is now totally focused on the World Para Athletics Championships in Paris in 2023, followed by the Paralympic Games – also in the French capital – in 2024.
“I think we’ll keep things broadly the same because it’s obviously working really well,” she says of her training programme, “although Aston will obviously change things up as I progress.
READ MORE: AW’s how they train series
“Looking ahead, although I think my 200m will be quite good, my focus will mainly be the 100m and long jump. I’m really excited to see what I can do for the long jump with the speed I have.”
Monday: sprint-based session incorporating, for example, 3x40m and 3x60m with 5min recovery, plus a jumping element which could be six jumps off eight strides and 10 jumps off 12 strides, plus core workout.
Tuesday: gym session (heavy gym session) plus general workout. For example, working on feet, calf muscles.
Wednesday: blocks, plyometrics and 150m reps (such as 3 or 4x150m with 5min recoveries).
Thursday: yoga session to let body recover.
Friday: jumps session (similar to Monday) then endurance-based sprints incorporating 3x90m or 120m sprints with 4min recoveries.
Saturday: Gym (whole body workout) and core circuit.
Sunday: Rest day. “I love going for walks, I’ll go a long walk with a podcast on and I find that really therapeutic.”
Favourite session
“I love the endurance stuff, the longer, over-distance running. Everyone else says to me, ‘Are you mad?’ but I just love the feeling after it.”
Least favourite session
“Anything to do with coordination. I love it when I succeed at something, but sometimes my body just doesn’t want to do it.”
» This article first appeared in the September issue of AW magazine
