Ian O'Riordan

Ireland

Athletics Correspondent at Irish Times

Athletics Correspondent @IrishTimesSport; son of the runner, mother from the mountain.

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Articles

Rhasidat Adeleke finishes fourth in first individual race of season in Florida

5 days ago | irishtimes.com | Ian O'Riordan

There were sufficient positives for Rhasidat Adeleke to take from her first individual race of the season, with her fourth-place finish over 200 metres at the Tom Jones Memorial meeting in Gainesville, Florida on Friday coming against three Olympic finalists in the event.
I have seen the next Usain Bolt, and his name is Gout Gout

6 days ago | irishtimes.com | Ian O'Riordan

You know something crazy big is happening in athletics when running commentators everywhere are falling over themselves in the race to compare Gout Gout with Usain Bolt. It’s clearly still early days, but part of the fun is knowing the utter fallibility in predicting the trajectory of any young athlete not yet old enough to vote. What is evident from recent performances is that Gout already has the potential to surpass much of what Bolt achieved in his heyday.
Daniel Wiffen finishes outside the 1,500m freestyle world record, but still produces another world-class swim

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ian O'Riordan

By his own unfailingly lofty standards, Daniel Wiffen finishing some 12 seconds outside the 1,500m freestyle world record may have felt initially underwhelming, but the Armagh swimmer quickly realised some proper context.
Rhasidat Adeleke named in Ireland squad for World Athletics Relays in China

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ian O'Riordan

Rhasidat Adeleke has declared her availability for next month’s World Athletics Relays in Guangzhou, China, significantly boosting Ireland’s prospects of qualifying at least two relay teams for the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo in September. Adeleke played a major role in Ireland qualifying a women’s 4x400m and mixed 4x400m for last year’s Paris Olympics, running sub-50 second splits on the second leg in both events at the 2024 World Athletics Relays in the Bahamas last May.
Lee Chin primed for another Wexford summer after wintering well in Australia

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ian O'Riordan

Lee Chin is not saying every ageing intercounty hurler should try to spend three months in Australia over the winter, if at all possible. All Chin is saying is that it didn’t do him any harm. About to embark on his 14th championship season with Wexford, he feels, and indeed looks, as robustly fit and healthy as ever, his hurling also seeming to improve season-on-season.
Boost for Clare as Shane O’Donnell is set to be back from injury within ‘four and eight weeks’

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ian O'Riordan

Shane O’Donnell expects to be back to full contact hurling “in anywhere between four and eight weeks”, a welcome boost for All-Ireland champions Clare as they begin their title defence against Cork in Ennis this Sunday. After undergoing surgery on his right shoulder at the end of January, O’Donnell was originally expected to be ruled out of the game for six months, thus missing Clare’s entire championship campaign, but the enhanced pace of his recovery means he is now set to play some part.
Wicklow put the fear into Dublin before they eventually escape from Aughrim

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ian O'Riordan

Leinster SFC quarter-final: Wicklow 0-18 Dublin 2-21A rare Dublin visit to the home ground of the Garden County, and the fear among some locals they would promptly set Aughrim alight never came to pass. Instead it was more campfire than wildfire, as Wicklow bravely covered that threat by giving every bit as good as they got. Only the third championship meeting between the neighbouring counties in 35 years, Dublin won by 23 points last time out, in 2018.
Efrem Gidey narrowly misses out on bronze medal in the European half marathon championships

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ian O'Riordan

For so long a gutsy and determined run by Efrem Gidey looked poised to earn him the half marathon bronze medal at the inaugural European Running Championships in Leuven, Belgium on Saturday morning, only for Gidey to be outkicked in the last 100 metres by Valentin Gondouin from France.
Do you believe that Tadej Pogačar is the greatest cyclist of all time?

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ian O'Riordan

Just because it’s Holy Week doesn’t mean Lance Armstrong was trying to spread some sort of gospel truth when describing Tadej Pogačar as the greatest cyclist of all time. Some people will always have a hard time believing in anything Armstrong says or does, and for good reason, although his latest sermon on Pogačar is worthy of closer reflection.
Mountains being moved to find success in Wicklow football

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ian O'Riordan

Days after Oisín McConville landed the Wicklow football job in September 2022, his phone lit up with an unknown number, which he hurriedly answered in case it was someone telling him they’d somehow made a mistake. “Of course it was Micko, God rest him, one of the first people to ring and wish me the best. Then he offers me some advice, saying there are parts of Wicklow where one side of the mountain wouldn’t be talking with the other side of the mountain.