Sive Brassil, modern pentathlon athlete from Ballinasloe. Photo: Eoin Noonan/Sportsfile.

Brassil's bid for Tokyo Olympics comes to an end

Kieran Galvin

Published: Thu 24 Jun 2021, 9:15 AM

Last updated: Thu 24 Jun 2021, 9:21 AM

Sive Brassil's hopes of qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics have come to an end.

The Ballinasloe native is an elite competitor in modern pentathlon, a sport that combines five disciplines (running, swimming, showjumping, fencing and shooting).

A former student at Our Lady's Bower in Athlone, Brassil recently achieved a career-best finish of 26th in the UIPM 2021 Pentathlon World Championships in Cairo.

Unfortunately, however, it wasn't enough for the dedicated Brassil to make it to the Tokyo Olympics.

In a heartfelt and thoughtful online post, Brassil (27) summed up her feelings about missing out on Tokyo.

"Last week, my hunt for a place at the Tokyo Olympics came to an end. It has been an incredibly tough and frustrating season for me. There were glimmers of hope throughout the season but in the end, I didn't do enough to qualify," said Sive.

"I'm heartbroken at not achieving a lifelong dream. I am disappointed in my results but my biggest regret this year is that I wasn't kinder to myself.

"Nevertheless, it has been an absolute privilege to be in the fight these past few months and years and I'm hugely grateful to my coaches, physios, psychologists and support staff. And I'm grateful to my friends and family for their endless love and support," Sive continued.

"I'm a little bit lost at sea right now and I probably will be for a while. The last few years have been all about Sive the athlete so now it's time to reacquaint myself with Sive the person," she added.

In an interview with the Westmeath Independent last year, Sive said qualifying for the Olympics "would be a dream come true" and the "culmination of a life's work to date".

Sive also spoke of her "happy memories" from her time in secondary school in the Bower.

Brassil's Ireland teammate Natalya Coyle has qualified for Tokyo, but two-time Olympian Arthur Lanigan-O’Keeffe can't make it after missing the World Championships with a hip injury.

The 2020 Olympic Games were postponed last year due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the rescheduled global sporting event is now due to start next month.