Rachel follows her dream in the army

Nineteen year-old Private Rachel Lawless, from Portarlington, Offaly, was among 27 recent recruits who completed "an important rite of passage" by passing out as fully-trained 3-Star soldiers during a ceremony in Athlone's Custume Barracks last Friday.

The recruits started their training on January 17, and went on to complete 15 weeks of recruit training, followed by a 10-week 3-Star training course. Pte Lawless said drills involving running with weights were the toughest part of the training process.

"I'm not very good at running with weight. But you start off slow and you gradually build up to it. They won't throw you into the deep end straight away, they make sure you're well able before you do anything out of the ordinary," she said.

Pte Lawless has been boxing from a young age. She said she was hoping to make progress in the sport while in the Defence Forces, with her ultimate goal being to represent Ireland at the Olympics.

"The main reason why I joined the Army was to try to (develop) my career in boxing," she explained.

"My Dad used to box and he got me into it. I've been going training with him since I was young. Knowing that the Army can make boxing one of my main priorities… I couldn't wait to join as soon as I heard that.

"The thing I've always wanted to do since I was younger is to go to the Olympics and represent Ireland. That's my goal now, to go back into training, focus on that, focus on my (Army) duties, and try to get to the 2024 Olympics."

In attendance at the ceremony on Friday were Pte Lawless' parents, Ray and Emer, and her brothers, Sean and Sam.

The majority of the training took place in Custume Barracks, with the new soldiers coming from various parts of Ireland, as well as from Poland, Scotland, Moldova, Finland and England.

At the ceremony, the newly qualified soldiers were told that Friday marked "the end of your journey as a platoon, and the beginning of your career in the Defence Forces."

Col Pat White, Executive Officer, 2 Brigade, congratulated the platoon "on completing successfully this first significant step in your military career as you pass out as fully-qualified 3-Star soldiers of Óglaigh na hÉireann."

Col White thanked the soldiers' family and friends for supporting them on their journey, "especially during Covid times."