Marathon man Sergiu's journey from Moldovan wine to Clonmel Honey

Have you ever taken part in something that later played a significant role in your life, but it never dawned on you at the time?
I firmly believe such an event shaped my future when I was 17-years-old. There was a local race, some kind of qualifier for the country, I think about 3k.
I had never run or trained competitively, never joined any running club. I casually entered and oh my God, I crossed the finish line in second place.
The local TV cameras were there covering the race and when I arrived in school on Monday everyone was congratulating me.
That was my introduction to competitive running. Naturally I had to enter again the following year and yes, I won that race. Sometimes, life just throws things at you. Up to then, I only ran while training for soccer, but I gradually trained more and ran a 69 minute half marathon.
HAPPY MEMORIES
Growing up in Moldova has many happy memories for me. Our youthful days were carefree. We played outdoors as often as we could, usually on a large nearby farm and we would say to the drivers, “Take me on the tractor”,but we never seemed to get into trouble or mischief.
I remember asking my uncle for the key to the tractor when I was only five-years-old. Looking back, the key he gave me must have been a fake as I spent hours trying to start it.
I remember getting my first bike and every time I took it out, I seemed to have to fix a puncture.
One day I had a very bad crash, but I wasn’t the least bit concerned whether I was hurt or had anything broken, it was all about the bike - how could I tell my parents the bike was damaged.
In Moldova, family is so important, and I know my first cousins as well as my immediate family.
My memories of school days are all happy ones. The school system is somewhat different in Moldova. We went to a play garden school until seven years of age, onto primary school, -Bacalaureat- for four years, then secondary school Liceau for eight years.

At college, sport training was organised and I ran my first 5km on the track in 16.20.
IRISH WEATHER
I find it so amusing to listen to people giving out about Irish weather. Of course, there are some wet days when to go outside - unless you are well togged out - will get you very wet.
Back in Moldova we often experience 40 degrees during the summer, lovely for a few days but if this persists, it is so uncomfortable.
What can grow in such high temperatures? Imagine trying to run in that heat.
Winters in Moldova often last from November to March where you experience ice, sleet, so much cold, and then when it thaws, the muck.
Gosh, when I stop to think of it, and this goes on for five months. We always walked to school in that - a round trip of five miles, imagine doing that every day. Then you may have reason to complain about the weather.
I initially came to Ireland for six months as my friend Dumitru was living in Dublin. That was in 2006. In Moldova I had qualified at Kinesiotherapy and PE, so I was anxious to remain in this line of work.
But arriving in Ireland, with not a single word of English, this was not possible. I worked in various jobs and locations, and I found this period of my life difficult. One of my jobs was at the meat plant and my feet were cold all day which is not good for a runner.
After work, I would sit down with an English dictionary and notebook and learn English this way. The wonderful emotion I experienced when I could finally speak to athletes at training and races was everything.
STUDIES
I continued my studies and graduated from the Physical Therapy Institute in Cork, but I didn’t give up on my running.
I am still so grateful to Clonliffe Harriers running club, especially Peter McDermot and the late Joe Cooper who coached me.
It was here I met my great and now late friend and trainer, Jerry Kiernan. He had such a positive influence on my running life in Ireland.
How I miss Jerry. Jerry was an outstanding trainer and a lot of modern training methods he simply did not adopt. Jerry went out, ran, and enjoyed it.
JERRY KIERNAN
He loved a glass of red wine but had a fear of flying. A follower of Barcelona Football Club, Jerry would attend a few matches every year but to get onto the plane would involve the compulsory glass of red along with some calming tablets.
One of my life’s regrets is that I did not get Jerry to visit Moldova. He would have enjoyed it, but the journey could only have been on Aer Lingus.
How would we have got Jerry back onto the plane to return to Ireland? I still miss him so much. I salute Jerry for all he has achieved in sport.
falling in love
The gym in the Clonmel Park Hotel was where my love story with Eimear began. A Kildare lady, Eimear worked as a physio in Clonmel hospital, then went to Australia and achieved a Master’s degree in Sports Physiotherapy.
Meeting and falling in love with Eimear in 2012 was as joyous then as it is now. We both love going back to the Park Hotel.
The births of our children Danny, Rosalina and baby Vida were magical moments and all happened here in Ireland. I regularly get down on the floor to wrestle with our children, much to Eimear’s amusement.
As a parent, I look at our own children and often think about the potential dangers that might befall them. When we become parents, do we instantly forget about all the wild things we did when we were young?
Is it a natural reaction to overprotect our children?

SENSE OF PLACE
Our Sense of Place is firmly in Clonmel but all of us as a family love visiting Moldova. We so missed our annual trip last year due to Covid, but this summer we more than made up for it.
I think living in Ireland and keeping close contact with Moldova is good for our children.
CHRISTMAS
Moldova’s Christmas takes place on January 7 as our association is with the Eastern Orthodox Christian Church.
We also mark December 25 but the January date is more important. We celebrate exactly as in Ireland with family visiting and plenty to eat.
I still advise Eimear I should receive two Christmas gifts.
A great tradition in Moldova is the singing of Christmas carols when we go around to people’s houses.
I used to love this. The children would receive nuts, honey, gifts. I see this tradition only seems to take place at Halloween in Ireland.
It is such a big thing and I always felt it gave more meaning to Christmas. While I do not regard myself as a singer, I enjoy singing and music.
In 2014, Eimear and I decided to start our own business and we now work with a group of very talented people at the Clonmel Premier Physiotherapy Clinic providing a variety of therapies.
At our clinic, we increasingly notice more young people arriving with hip and knee injuries at a much younger age and I feel perhaps the teenagers are over training - rugby Monday night, GAA Tuesday night, soccer Wednesday night, maybe a blitz at the weekend.
My preference for our children is to get involved with a particular sport, give their best and when they have had enough, try another sport.
What puzzles me is when some people decide to run a marathon and they put their bodies through all that training, torture, pain, run the race and then stop.
Why not train for a year beforehand or remain at running and get enjoyment out of it.
TRAINING
When I train for running, I run hard for one day then train for five or six days and in general, twice a day.
In January, I had an Achilles injury and I believe this was due to the lockdown/Covid of 2020 as I had no race to aim for so my training and attention to detail dropped.
I would go to bed later, skip a day’s training and take things a little easier. I was nearly knocked down running outside Cahir a few years ago - good job I was fast that night as I bounced off the bonnet of a car and I kept going. Tipperary can be a dangerous place to train.
People ask me about my diet and how stringent I am with eating - well I will tell you a little secret ‘I have never refused a bar of chocolate or a beer’ and have no intention of ever leaving either one behind me.
I continue to eat correct levels of protein and carbs, I have no issues with sweet things or an occasional drink. Your body must be fuelled to run.

OLYMPICS
I prepared so well for the 2016 Rio Olympics, especially as I had missed out on the London Olympics by 27 seconds. I paid so much attention to my training programme.
My team made sure all the boxes were ticked, I trained hard, and I did achieve the qualifying time.
But I was overlooked for a runner who had a slower time than mine. The support from all my great running friends around Ireland and especially in the Clonmel running club at this difficult time of my life is something I am so grateful for.
However, one real positive of me not going to Rio in 2016 is that I didn’t miss my son Danny being born.
While I was not selected to represent Ireland at the Olympics, I have represented Ireland since both at European and World level. I was the Irish National Marathon champion in 2009 and 2014, and cross country champion in 2013.
IRISH JERSEY
I also represented Ireland at the European cross country championships in 2015. I am so proud of my framed Irish jersey which hangs in our clinic.
But the years are catching up on me - soon I cannot compete at this level. I am thinking about trying triathlons as I can swim a little then cycle, so I will watch others pass me in the water and on the bike and then see if I can catch them on the road. This should be fun.
There is a strong triathlon club in Clonmel.
I admire and give great credit to the role of local sports clubs in Ireland.
Most children who engage in sporting activities all get a chance to participate.
Back in Moldova there is no in between - if you are no good at a sport, you are ignored, life just goes on.
But if you show promise, then you may receive help. In Ireland, so much credit must go to the volunteer coaches and parents who every week help all children across a wide range of sports.
There will always remain some regret missing out on being an Olympian twice. However, to win my fourth national marathon title in 2016 and hold my newly born son after crossing the finish line is something forever special. There has never been a day I do not enjoy running as I constantly run against the clock. And now that I coach athletes, I delight at their improvement.

OUR SENSE OF PLACE

Edmond Prendergast was involved in setting up the weekly notes column in The Nationalist, writing tributes and stories about his native parish of Kilsheelan/Kilcash.
One of Edmond’s favourite pastimes was to pen people’s stories for the annual Christmas parish bulletin, so he was delighted to get involved in the Sense of Place project.
He interviewed Sergui Ciobanu who moved to Ireland in 2006. Sergiu lives in Clonmel with his wife Eimear and three children.

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