By John Haughey BBC Sport

Derval O'Rourke won the World Indoor title in 2006

After her World Indoor title and European outdoor silver in 2006, injury meant that the Cork athlete never really got out of the blocks this year.

On paper, reaching the World Championship semi-finals was no disgrace but O'Rourke believed that a re-evaluation was imperative.

After mulling over the issue for some time, Derval decided to split with her long-time coach Jim Kielty and link up with former Irish hurdles international Sean Cahill.

"Jim was brilliant with me. I won the World Indoors with him but I just had to make some changes and figure out how to run 12.5," O'Rourke told BBC Sport Interactive.

Some reports suggested that O'Rourke had opted to move under the wing of Colin Jackson's former mentor Malcolm Arnold in Bath.

However, while the Cork athlete is based at the English venue for roughly 50 per cent of her training, she firmly points out that Cahill is her coach.

"I think they like to write things about me in papers and not bother to talk to me (first).

"Sean's in Dublin and I spend some time there and some time in England.

"I'm training very differently to how I trained before. Half the time I think it's going brilliantly and half the time I'm thinking, 'Good God, this is so different'. But I'm quite excited about it."

If I'm not injured, then I tend to run quite fast Derval O'Rourke

Given the fact, that the 26-year-old had a stress fracture in her spine this year, it's perhaps surprising that she even managed to get through a round of the World Championship in Osaka.

"I kept quite quiet about it. Then when things didn't go to plan, everyone assumed that I was just having a crap year.

"Not being injured is a big thing to me. If I'm not injured, then I tend to run quite fast."

Speaking at this week's launch of the 2008 Woodies DIY Irish Indoor Championship, an injury-free O'Rourke was in upbeat mood after seven weeks "when everything has been going super".

With the Athletics events not taking place in Beijing until mid-August, O'Rourke is planning a busy indoor season beginning with the Irish Championships at the Belfast's Odyssey Arena on 26-27 January and hopefully concluding at the World Indoors in Valencia (7-9 March).

"Peaking twice has never been an issue for me and sprint hurdles is conducive to doing both.

"Just to train between now and June and not do any competitions, I think mentally I would lose it.

"It would seem like there is no light at the end of the tunnel. Races give you a bit of a short-term focus so I need to come out and run indoors."

O'Rourke's injury problems meant that she missed this year's Belfast event but her performance in late January should give a few pointers as to her prospects of making an impact in Valencia, and more importantly, Beijing.