Murphy Ireland laboratory technician Sophie Becker is also an Olympic athlete, who represented Ireland at the Games in Tokyo this summer. Having worked at Murphy for two years, she is based at Citywest. The athlete, who competed in the mixed relay 4×400 meter events, said she is honoured to have taken part in the prestigious sporting event.
“It’s been a rollercoaster few years that have finally led to this once in a lifetime experience,” the 24-year-old said. “It would not have been possible without my coaches, family, friends and work, Murphy Ireland. Your support has been invaluable throughout this journey.”
The Raheny Shamrock AC runner has secured both national indoor and outdoor titles over the past year. She claimed a 400meter personal best of 52.32 at the Mary Peters Track in Belfast in May, placing her fifth on the Irish all-time list. Her colleagues at Murphy have been wishing their, and one of the nation’s, Olympic medal hopefuls the very best.
“We in Murphy Ireland are extremely proud of Sophie and all her achievements to date,” said Anthony Brennan, Operations Director – Water with Murphy Ireland.
We catch up with the athlete to find out more about work and life …
Sophie Becker
Tell us about your work?
I am a laboratory technician for Murphy Ireland in Citywest. My role involves travelling out on site to collect samples and data, performing analyses on the samples from site and analysing the results.
What do you like most about your role?
I really enjoy how each day changes for me, some days I am in the lab all day, other days I am out on-site collecting samples and data. I get a great insight into how each department is involved in the development of a water treatment plant and get to meet people involved in various aspects of water treatment.
What has been your biggest challenge?
My degree is Genetics & Cell Biology so learning about water treatment and infrastructure was a whole new world to me and it took me some time to understand the processes involved in water treatment.
What is the most rewarding part of your job?
I like that analyses that we carry out in the lab can help solve an issue out on site. It is really rewarding to receive a sample in the lab and to perform various analysis on to determine the fault.
Good luck wishes ahead of the Tokyo Olympics
What is your proudest achievement?
I began my journey at Murphy as an intern for my college placement. I am proud to still be working here two years later and to have broadened my experience outside the lab.
What are your career aspirations?
I hope to get the opportunity to work in different labs across the country and play a role in big projects from start to finish.
Describe a typical weekend?
On Saturdays you will usually find me at the track doing my final running session of the week. Sundays I usually spend drinking coffee with my friends and family or at the beach attempting to surf.
Tell us something we can’t read about you on the internet?
My parents used to farm ostriches on our farm when I was younger. They turned out to be not very popular, so they gave them to Dublin Zoo. The ostriches in the zoo currently are the offspring of our ostriches!
