Annalise Murphy: ‘There’s a lot of things I have to work on’ – Olympic silver medallist

Annalise Murphy will compete for Ireland at the Tokyo Olympics next year

Olympic silver medallist Annalise Murphy says she is working to improve her confidence after a disappointing European Championships performance.

The 30-year-old from Dublin finished 27th in the laser radial class in Poland last week.

“There’s a lot of things I need to work on, not so much my sailing skills but it’s such a mental sport.” said Murphy.

“So, I’m working on my confidence going into racing – that’s something that’s really important to me.”

She added: “I won my previous event in Italy but I made mistakes and was dreading every day in Poland – it was a bit of car crash for me.”

Murphy won silver in Rio four years ago – Ireland’s first sailing medal for 36 years – after coming an agonising fourth in 2012 in London when she led for most of the event.

Performance anxiety

She has struggled with nerves prior to big races and despite her experience in the sport it remains a barrier to performing at her best.

“Admitting to other people in Rio that I was scared helped me, rather than not telling anyone and it eating me up,” Murphy told BBC Radio Ulster’s Sportsound Extra Time.

“If I’m not confident going out on the day I find it very hard to get good starts. It’s about being mentally in the right place to race.

“When I’ve got confidence in my ability I feel I can do anything. Each day you have to go out and do well and when I’m sailing at my best it just seems easy.

Annalise Murphy celebrates winning Olympic silver for Ireland at the Rio Games

“But I can quite easily have my confidence knocked – I’d have a bad race or a mistake and then doubt creeps into your mind. Then decisions that would normally make you would second guess yourself.

“Sailing is similar to golf. You are competing over multiple days and even if you’ve had a good race or a bad race it’s how you react in the next race will determine how you are going to do.

“I thought at this stage of my career I would be able to think that if I had a bad race I would can move on, but that’s not the case.”

Next year’s Olympics in Tokyo could be the last for Murphy as she considers her future at the top level of the sport.

“In Olympic sailing you have to give so much of your life to it – I find it hard to do anything but sailing and trying to be the best I can be,” she said.

“You can keep sailing and going to Olympics it comes to a point where you are doing it for the right reasons.

“I’ll get to the point where I feel I’ve achieved everything I can and then find out what I want to do next.”

Click here to hear Annalise Murphy’s full interview on Sportsound Extra Time.