Fermanagh rowers aiming for their absolute best in Paris

It will be the culmination of years of hard work and sacrifice to get to that point. The ups and downs that have come along the way helped the two rowers to reach the pinnacle of their careers, so far.

Having arrived in Paris on Monday after their final training camp in Italy, the Team Ireland rowers were getting used to their surroundings.

Ross and Nathan admit that arriving in Paris will start to make everything that bit more real as they have been nestled in their training camp for the best part of a month, more or less isolated from the noise outside.

"Prep has been good the last three or four weeks," said Nathan.

"There haven’t been any real interruptions. We've been fairly consistent over the last three or four weeks so, I think that's definitely a plus when you look back over the last six months.

"The training has been solid, we have been pushing against the other crews here. The Men's double has been keeping us on our toes seems it is all paying off at the moment.

"We are so isolated in the training it's hard to realise what we are doing and where we are. Sometimes you kind of forget you are actually training for the Olympic Games."

But that is all changing as Nathan added: "The last week [there's a] bit of a buzz circulating at home.

"It's given us motivation and a bit of a zeal to look forward to the Olympic Games. It's brilliant. It makes it all the more exciting."

The preparation this week will all be about getting the finer details right and making sure they are in sync when they get into the boat.

Ross knows how important that is as well as the belief that those around them have in the two rowers.

"The [mindset of the] two of us in the boat that is so important. That and the dynamic between the two of us and our coach Nicolo Maurogiovani. Between the three of us we set out on this and we are constantly revising, constantly trying to make it better.

"We are fortunate that we have so many people around us that believe in us, that believe in the team that are here with us. The High Performance Director, family, friends, coaches, support staff, Sport Ireland, OFI.

You have everyone who believes in your ability to have a brilliant performance at the Olympics.

"At times when things are tough you are going to have someone there who is going to help pick you up and get you back in the boat and push on for another session.

"We were out in Italy, it was 30 degrees and we were loving it.

"But we have had tough days in this camp. We have had days where we've fallen out about opinions and what we think should happen in the boat.

"That is healthy too. It's good to have that. The only reason it's happening from the beginning is because we both care about the end product."

The end product for them is a gold medal. They have not hidden that aspiration.

Ross admitted that it may be somewhat delusional but that delusion is a good thing when it comes to striving for their absolute best.

"It keeps you going. If we had been super realistic thinking we were going to the Olympics you might have got bogged down in everything that had to be done.

"We set out with the gold medal in mind. Same last year at the World Championships. We set out with a gold medal in mind. At the end of the day, we didn’t get it.

Nathan agreed: "You set those goals early on and you work towards them.

"It makes it easier to make sacrifices if you think we are sacrificing this because down the line we want a gold World Championship medal or a gold Olympic medal.

"It minimises the doubt that can set in too. If you are too realistic you might see yourself in a B final or C final.

"You might see one day at training you're not hitting those times and a bit of doubt might seep in again. So it's always good to keep the mind focused on a gold medal."

The pair are eager to get going with their heat scheduled for Sunday morning, July 28.

The heats will give them a chance to get into their rhythm and hopefully set them up for the semi-finals three days later. 

They will look back at their performances in last year's World Championships where they picked up a bronze medal and qualified the boat for the Olympics.

Nathan believes the more relaxed they are the better they perform: "Going into the Olympics this year yes, there's a bit of pressure and stress. A bit of nervousness is absolutely good.

"For us when we are very relaxed and chilled and we know what we got to do and know the end goal.

"And as long as we have done the hard work in the last four weeks, we can take confidence from that and stay relaxed."

Ross added: "I feel like everyone likes to get the heats done so everyone knows where they are.

"We'll be excited to get started and get the heat done, especially when you are so close at this stage three days beforehand." 

The pair will skip the opening ceremony in Paris on Friday evening due to its proximity to their first race. But they do hope to get to the closing ceremony.

Family and friends will also be making their way over to cheer on the rowers and Nathan and Ross both agreed their appearance in Paris is as much an experience for those travelling over as it is for the pair.

"It's not only an experience for us, it's an experience for our family and friends coming over as well. So we want them to have just as much of an experience as we do.

"Obviously those are the guys who poured in and got us here from the very beginning. It's a blessing for them as it is for us."

As well as those family and friends who will be spectating, Ross has a closer connection also competing for Ireland.

His cousin Leona Maguire will compete in the second week of the Olympics in the golf. With his events and hopefully a medal in his pocket he hopes to get a chance to watch her compete.

But for now, all eyes are on Sunday and making a good start. 

And their minds are firmly set on doing that and building on it. 

"If we aim for the top we can only settle for our absolute best," concluded Nathan.