Hero’s welcome for Loughrea’s silver medallist

Date Published: 20-Aug-2009

Galway’s own Olive Loughnane will fly into Ireland to a hero’s welcome this weekend as hundreds of family, friends, athletics colleagues and fans are expected to greet the World Championship silver medallist at a ceremony at Dublin Airport on Saturday.

And preparations are already underway for even bigger celebrations the following weekend as Loughrea Athletics Club is planning to stage a major ceremony to welcome one of Ireland’s all-time most successful athletes back to her home town.

Loughnane will be paraded before a packed Croke Park during halftime of the All-Ireland Semi-final football clash between Cork and Tyrone this Sunday and a civic reception to honour Ireland’s star of the moment has also been mooted.

The 33-year-old Loughrea woman walked her way into the history books in Berlin last weekend by becoming only the fourth Irish athlete ever to win a medal at the World Championships.

Loughnane, despite the steaming hot conditions, had the legs to clock a season best of 1 hour 28 minutes and 58 seconds and claim a silver medal in the 20 kilometre walk in the World Track and Field Championships.

Reigning Olympic champion Olga Kaniskina of Russia took gold winning by a margin of 49 seconds, but it was Loughnane’s drive and determination that ignited the race as she blew away some of the top competitors in the world.

Continued on page 5 of this week’s Tribune