COOKE Aoife

General
COLLEGIATE CAREER AND RETURN TO RUNNING
At age 17 she attended Arkansas Tech University on an athletics scholarship in Russellville, AR, United States of America, where she competed in cross-country until 2005. "I didn't turn 18 until a few months later, so that was young to pack up and leave, a big deal at the time, but it was definitely an adventure, I didn't really know what I wanted to do after school anyway." After a series of injuries she decided to return to Ireland and worked as a physical education teacher and in an office-based job. She also returned to education at University College Cork [UCC] where she studied a bachelor's degree in sport studies between 2007 and 2011. After taking up running again as a hobby she decided to return to competition running in 2015. "I'd done so well up to that point during my college time in Arkansas. It felt like everything was going great, and then these injuries happened. For a couple of years, I did think it was over and there was no chance anymore. I started looking after my health quite a lot more and eventually it started improving. I got back to running recreationally for a while, and when that felt okay was when I decided to get back properly." (arkansastechnews.com, 15 Jun 2021; irishtimes.com, 21 Nov 2020; LinkedIn profile, 01 Jan 2020; gympluscoffee.com, 22 Oct 2019)

OLMPIC DREAM
After she returned to competitive running in 2015, she was more interested in winning local events before her focus switched to qualifying for her first Olympic Games. "I wasn't thinking so much about the Olympics when I first got back. I just wanted to win my local races and properly improve on my time." After the Games in Tokyo were postponed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she continued her training during the whole of 2020 with hopes of running a qualifying time once competition resumed, and was aiming to run a time at the 2021 Cheshire Elite Marathon in Wrexham, Wales. "There were times when I thought to myself, 'is there a point?' I can't keep doing this if things are going to keep getting cancelled and I have nothing to aim for. I got it into my head that it was going ahead [2021 Cheshire Elite Marathon]. I trained as if it was going ahead, and thankfully it did." In April 2021 she won the event in a personal best time of 2:28:36, which was almost a minute under the Olympic women's qualifying standard for the marathon [2:29:30]. (arkansastechnews.com, 15 Jun 2021; worldathletics.org, 25 Apr 2021; irishtimes.com, 25 Apr 2021)

COMING OUT
When she attended Arkansas Tech University in Russellville, AR, United States of America, she came out as gay and was grateful for the support she received from her peers at the university and from her family and friends back home. "It wasn't until in Arkansas that I fully came to the realisation myself, that I was gay. Over there I met a few students who were gay, got to know them personally, and that's where it really opened for me. It's different now, I think, but for me growing up I didn't even know anybody who was gay. It wasn't something I thought too much about. I was so focused on running, engrossed in sport. Running helped my self confidence, I don't worry as much about what other people think, I know what I want, where I'm going, and that in turn helped me be more open about my sexuality." (irishtimes.com, 21 Nov 2020)

BUSINESS OWNER
She runs her own running coach and personal trainer business called Aoife Cooke Fitness, which is based in Cork, Ireland. She also works as a personal fitness trainer [fitness specialist] for a technology company in Ireland. (Facebook page, 24 Jun 2021; Facebook profile, 23 Jun 2021; irishtimes.com, 21 Nov 2020; LinkedIn profile, 01 Jan 2020; gympluscoffee.com, 22 Oct 2019)