JOANNA SET FOR INDIA

Joanna - who currently lives in Stranocum - will be part of the Northern Ireland team at the showpiece event in October - competing in the 200m, 400m and 4 x 400m relay events.

She goes to the competition as the fastest member of the team in the 400m event, boasting a personal best of 54.4 seconds.

The former Dalriada pupil said she was ecstatic when she received confirmation she would be taking to the track at the games which are beamed on television to millions of people across the world.

And the timing of the announcement couldn't have been any better, coming two days before Joanna celebrated her birthday.

"I'm very excited," she told Times Sport.

"I found out about two weeks ago.

"It was actually two days before my 22nd birthday so it was the perfect present.

"I thought beforehand there may be an opportunity to go to the Commonwealths, particularly with the relay team as we have been running quite well recently. But you never know until you get confirmation and I was delighted."

What makes the selection all the more remarkable is that Joanna only started training properly three years ago.

She said :"I did run at school and won the Irish Schools' Hurdles but then I didn't really train when I went to university until a couple of years ago." Her talent was soon spotted by coaches and she was selected to take part in the World Student Games in Serbia last year, where her relay side secured fourth spot.

The call-up at the end of the year is just the boost Joanna needed following a frustrating 2010 due to injuries.

Plucky Joanna battled through the pain of a slipped disc in her back and a reoccurring hamstring problem to compete at numerous competitions as well as a five-day-a-week training schedule.

In order to ensure she is fit to take part in the Commonwealth Games, Joanna must carefully manage her preparations to minimise any injuries flaring up before she flies off.

"I have concerns," she admitted.

"But when I get to India all the top physios will be there so I will be in good hands."

And Joanna is also perfectly placed to keep her body in tip-top shape having just graduated from university in Bath with a degree in sports science.

She will embark on a course in medicine at the University of Glasgow from September from where she will head off to a week-long training camp with the rest of the Northern Ireland squad in Portugal just prior to the Commonwealths.

The ultimate ambition of any athlete is to appear at the Olympic Games and Joanna admits it would be a dream come true to get the nod for the 2012 extravaganza.

"You never know," she said.

"We'll just see how it goes. This is another stepping stone towards that hopefully.

"All athletes want to go to the Olympics. I'll stick to it, work hard and see what happens."

Joanna is originally from the south of England but moved to the Ballymoney area five years ago when her parents - who are from north Antrim - returned home having spent 25 years in England.

REPORT: CHRIS KILPATRICK