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You are > Home > Irish could have done a lot better in Helsinki
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Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Irish could have done a lot better in Helsinki
By Ray Flynn
OK. I hold my hands up. Ireland’s performance at the tenth IAAF World Athletics Championships in Helsinki, Finland, which finished last Sunday week was poor. With the exception of our sprinters – Paul Hession, Dervilla O’Rourke and Karen Shinkins – the rest of our 11-strong team performed badly.
I would also make exceptions for our race walkers, Olive Loughnane and Robert Heffernan, each of whom got disqualified. Disqualification is part and parcel of race walking and Heffernan, in particular, was having a great race when he was disqualified with less than 4km to go to the finish.
Having worked very closely with the Cork native over the past couple of years, I know that its only a matter of time before he wins a medal at a major event.
Our team have received plenty of criticism in the media and elsewhere – some of this criticism may be valid – but what a lot of people seem to forget is that athletics is far and away Ireland’s most successful sport at international level.
Ronnie Delaney, Eamon Coughlan, John Treacy, Sonia O’Sullivan and Gillian O’Sullivan are some of the people who have won medals at World Championships and in the Olympic Games.
Only this year, David Gillick, Colin Costello and Danny Darcy have won medals at European Championships.
Contrast this with three main sports played in this country – soccer, rugby and GAA. Some years ago we nearly declared a national holiday when our soccer team reached the last eight in the 2002 World Cup, but they brought home no medals.
Our rugby team have never brought home a medal from the World Cup, while GAA is really only played at parish and county level and has no international outlet.
I admit that everything is not perfect with our sport at the moment and the sooner the Athletics Association of Ireland can provide funding to get coaches and development officers into our schools the better.
If those coaches do nothing only to explain to our children that there are sports other than GAA and soccer then they will be doing a good day’s work.
This coming weekend we have the annual Warriors Run taking place in Strandhill. This race is the most successful race in terms of numbers taking part in this area. It is a race where the ordinary punter on the street (who thinks he or she is reasonably fit) can take part.
The atmosphere in Strandhill on race day is always a bit special and I have no doubt that next Sunday’s race will be no exception. ‘Meet and train’ athletes as well as serious athletes will also be taking to Knocknarae Mountain on Sunday. I have no doubt that if Lucy Brennan is in the field that she will be taking home the women’s prize. In the men’s section, if Sligo athletes Gary Higgins and Emmett Dunleavy decide to compete then the men’s prize will also be staying in Sligo.
It is an awful lot of years since a road race was held in the quaint village of Dromahair, County Leitrim, where Sligo AC master athlete Danny Hannon is a resident. This will end on Sunday, September 4, when a four-mile race will take place there. There will also be children’s races for U-8, U-11 and U-14 competitors, as well as a four-mile walk. All athletes – of all abilities – are urged to take part, with the first race starting at 2pm. Proceeds go to the Trocaire Niger Famine Relief Appeal.
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