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Osaka Diary Number 7.
The 11th IAAF World Track and Field Championships continued on a really positive note for
the Irish.
Rob Heffernan of Togher Co Cork returned the best ever walks performance by a
male Irish athlete in a World Championships or Olympic event finishing
6th in the
20k walk in a time of time 1:23:42 early today.
With Joanne Cuddihy of Kilkenny came
through to qualify for the 400m semi-final with a season's best time of
51:55.
These results represent another successful day for the Irish team at the
11th World Track and Field Championships.
An early start, out of the bed at 05:30 on the road at 06:30 for an 8 am start
for Rob's race. He was up 04:30; I heard him moving about and chirpy as
ever. He was coming to this event really well prepared and targetting
a top ten place. He went with the pace; the Olympic champion, an
Italian,
got really stuck in
everybody let him at it. I was on the outside supporting with calls
like at home, keep it together, fight the gap etc. A race is a race.
The race was won by Perez from Ecquador who I first encountered as he
won the World Junior title in Soeul 1992.
Mighty excitement afterwards
as the Irish media appreciated the performance and great comments from
Rob himself who had in addition just won prizemoney of $10000 which
will be welcome to him as he was on the buildings last year this time
working for his brother in law.
Got him into a barrel of ice water
still calling home even though it is the middle of the night to those
close to him his family and his daughter who he would have seen little
of as he chased his dream this last year. He boards a plane tomorrow
back to Ireland to be there when his daughter goes to school.
The plan
now to focus, structure himself and when next we are in Beijing
together he is on the line thinking not about top ten but about an
Olympic medal.
I said to him in Leamington a few months ago and he
reminded me that one of these days he could be the man;
that he certainly
can.
Watched the 400m Joanne Cuddihy from the stand with Ricky and
Marian and she lived to fight another day in the semis now.
Tomorrow,
it's Derval and that wonen's steeplechase final.
Patsy Mc Gonagle from Osaka.
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