NICOLA Tuthill admits she’ll never be satisfied with the monstrous distances she throws – because she’s always chasing better.
The Kilbrittain native is enjoying the most prolific spell of her young career: silver medals at both the European U23 Championships and World University Games, followed by a successful defence of her national title last weekend, with a new personal best of 71.75m added in.
She’s thrilled, naturally – new milestones, international podiums, personal bests. But for Nicola, it’s about what’s next. That mindset is what sets her apart. It’s that inner relentlessness.
Her coach Killian Barry put it best: ‘Nicola doesn’t get carried away with all the success that she’s having. She’s cool, calm and collected, and has a humble outlook on her own performance … She has extremely high standards and expects a lot from herself.’
Even when Nicola made history by becoming the first Irish athlete to win a field event medal at the European U23s, she balanced the joy with her trademark drive.
‘I’m always looking for a little bit more,’ she said at the time.

Speaking on this week’s Star Sport Podcast, she adds: ‘All athletes will never be fully satisfied – they’re always looking for something more, and I’m the same.’
‘Coming into this year, I knew it was my last chance at the European U23s. I was fourth two years ago, so to medal I knew I had to throw over 70 metres – and I was right. The top three all went over 70. Two years ago I threw 66 to finish fourth, but this time the top eight were all over 66. Everyone is improving, so if I want to reach my goals, I know I have to keep improving too.’
Encouragingly, that’s exactly what she’s doing.
In 2024, Nicola threw a personal best of 70.32m to qualify for the Paris Olympics. She has since bettered that distance multiple times, including a new PB of 71.75m last weekend.
At the European U23s, she threw 71.33m in qualifying and landed 70.90m in the final to take silver.
‘A medal like this is special – they’re hard to come by,’ she says. ‘I am delighted, but in terms of distance I’ll never be satisfied. I always want that little bit more, which is a good and a bad thing!’
‘I knew coming away from the championships that I wasn’t 100 percent technically right, and I was still able to get quite a big throw. I’m hopeful that day will come when I’m technically perfect – and it’ll go even further.’

Nicola trusts the big performances will come. She has seen the positive signs in training, and that fuels her belief that there’s more to come. National record holder Eileen O’Keeffe is the only Irish woman to have ever thrown further than the West Cork woman who, at 21, has her best years ahead. She’s learning all the time and normalising the big occasions.
‘I am getting more familiar with the girls I’m competing against, and more friendly with them too. Some people might like to talk when we’re in the call-room, others might like to really focus,’ explains Nicola, who, when in the zone, tends to keep to herself at competitions.
‘The more championships you go to, the more experiences you have – you’ll have good and bad days, and in-between days, so you’re getting used to that.
‘It’s good to learn things from the championships because I’m still young and have a good few years of competition ahead of me. I’m always looking to learn from other people, and take the good days when they come because they don’t always happen.’
There are also the days when you need to grind it out – like Nicola’s silver at the World University Games in Germany. The reward was her first medal on the world stage, but the struggle to get there was real. It was a stressful competition, she admits – Nicola threw 66.29m, 66.03m, 67.80m and 68.46m before hitting 69.98m with her last throw.
‘I didn’t quite hit the 70 metres. With the two championships (Euro U23 and World University Games) back to back, mentally and physically you are pretty tired, but I was happy to hit close to 70 with the last round,’ she says.
Learning to deal with the highs and lows within a competition is part of Nicola’s development too. From three throws in a qualifying round to six in a final, there’s little margin for error.
‘If your first throw doesn’t go as planned, you try not to let it get to you. If you let it get in your head, then you are setting yourself up to spiral,’ she says.
‘I’ll go back to my coach Killian, we’ll try to figure out what’s going wrong technically, and he’ll give me a few pointers. I’ll go back, try a drill or two, and focus on that.
‘I’ll also focus on the fact that this has also happened in training before, where I throw a 60-something when I want a 70, and then a few throws later I can get it when I tidy up my technique.
‘It’s trusting that I am capable of it and knowing that if I get things right it will all happen. Focus on what you can control rather than what you can’t.’
With another Irish senior title added to her collection last weekend – Nicola’s fourth since winning her first in 2020 when she was just 16 – she has already switched focus to her next big target: the World Seniors in September.
And she’s not done yet.