Robert Heffernan (Togher AC) raced to another fourth place finish in the 50km walk. A disappointed David Gillick (DSD AC) finished in 5th place in the final of the 400m at the European athletics championship in Barcelona and Paul Hession (Athenry AC) put in a great performance to finish in sixth position in the final of the 200m.
. Gillick was one of the favourites going into the final but he was unable to produce the excellent form he showed in the semi final when he ran 44.78. Gillick recorded 45.28 in the final which was won by the lesser favoured Borlee twin Kevin Borlee of Belgium in 45.08.
Paul Hession (Athenry AC) put in a great performance to finish in sixth position in the final of the 200m. Hession who clocked 20.77 ran an amazing first bend and was certainly in a contention hitting the 100m mark but was unable to match the pace up the home straight. This is Hession’s first major championship final and he certainly produced a highly commendable performance.
The eventual winner was Christophe Lamaitre of France (20.37) who just pipped early leader Christian Malcolm of Great Britain to claim the sprint double.
Robert Heffernan (Togher AC) raced to another fourth place finish in the 50km walk. Heffernan performed bravely in this gruelling event to claim another 4th position, reapting his position from the 20km Walk. While it will be further heartbreak for Heffernan to finish just outside of the medals, he will take huge consolation in a new National record and excellent performance.
Niamh Whelan of Ferrybank AC finished in 6th place in the first semi final of the 200m. Whelan recorded a time of 23.31 which is just .01 of a second outside of her personal best time. This is Whelan’s first major championship as a senior athlete and she will be delighted with her performances and in particular making the semi final. This follows on from a fourth place finish in last year’s European Junior track and field championships in Serbia. The young Waterford athlete just turned 20 recently and has made significant improvements this year. At the European Team championships in Budapest in June Whelan knocked almost half a second off her best time and set a new best time of 23.30.
Fionnuala Britton (Sli Chualainn AC) placed 11th in the final of the 3000m steeplechase. Britton struggled to contend with the early pace set by Dominguez of Spain and eventual winner Yuliva Zarudneva of Russia. Britton’s time of 9:44.25 is a little off her best time but the Wicklow woman will take away valuable championship experience from Barcelona.
