Canberra long-distance runner Emily Brichacek was at a crossroads.
She had been forced to withdraw from the 2015 world championships with a stress reaction near her shin, an injury that ultimately shattered her Rio Olympic Games hopes.
Enduring more downs than ups since her Commonwealth Games debut four years ago, Brichacek took a break from sport.
The 27-year-old began a masters in psychology, with a return to the Commonwealth Games so far off her radar she didn't even maintain a proper training program.
But now she has a shot at turning the unlikely milestone into a reality when she races in the 5000 metre event at the Australian athletics championships at Carrara Stadium on Friday night.
The only problem is, if she makes it then she will have a major headache when it comes to balancing Commonwealth Games preparations with university commitments.
"I've only got one year to go [in my masters] so there is light at the end of the tunnel," Brichacek said.
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"Starting out the course, for about a month I tried to keep up my normal training routine and I quickly realised I just kept getting niggles or getting sick. I had to prioritise uni at that point.
"If I make the team I may have to look at how I work things going forward, because we're just about to start back in some fairly intensive uni work. Hopefully I can sort that out when I cross that bridge.
"I didn't expect to be able to get back to doing [this], this wasn't on my radar at all when I first approached Sean.
"I more just wanted some guidance around what I was doing because I was just kind of jogging around and didn't really have a lot of direction in my program.
"To be in shape to run at the trials is a huge bonus for me."
Brichacek linked up with new coach Shaun Creighton in "about October", and at that point she got back into serious training, which she admits she had "neglected" for some time.
But she knows she'll be up against it when she tries to secure a Commonwealth Games berth against the likes of Heidi See, Eliose Wellings and Madeline Hills.
That's because she can't dedicate as much time as she'd like to being on the track – training and study aren't the only things an athlete with no funding needs to balance.
"I definitely need to work, I just have a part-time job at a local running shoe store," Brichacek said.
"It has been a juggling act and that was why at the start of the year I had to think if I've committed to doing the next two years of this uni course I really need to put all my eggs over there.
"Then hopefully I can focus on the running a bit more once that's finished."
While running isn't Brichacek's top priority right now, she says she would be silly not to take this chance seriously.
After all, how often do you get a shot at competing in the Commonwealth Games on home soil?
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SYDNEY MORNING HERALD
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