Heffernan kicks off double Olympic assault

Robert Heffernan embarks on the first leg of an Olympic double today when he lines up for the men’s 20k walk before embarking on a new Olympic experience in the 50k walk next Saturday.

Since the European Championships in Barcelona two years ago he has always said he would double up in London 2012.

Then he finished fourth in the 20k and a few days later took on the 50k for only the second time. He again finished third, with Olympic champion Alex Schwarzer behind him.

Despite concentrating on the longer distance, he found it difficult to turn his back on the 20k — after all he finished eighth in Beijing — and turned in a succession of impressive performances over the distance this year.

Since winning the Olympic title in Beijing, Valeriy Borchin has won two world titles and a European title and was unbeaten until the unlikely setting of Saransk — home of Russian racewalking — where he finished 10th in 1:21:29 — two places ahead of Heffernan.

The winner, China’s Zhen Wang, would go to the line favourite for today’s race were it not for the Russian tradition.

World record holder and world silver medallist Vladimir Kanaykin and World Cup silver medallist Andrey Krivov — all medal hopes — complete the Russian team.

The absence of Italy’s Schwazer — concentrating on the 50k — will increase everyone’s chances, however.

Heffernan won’t be far from the action today.

“If he is going well he’ll have a go,” coach Liam O’Reilly said. “He is in super form — mentally and physically. He had a light workout today and he is ready. This is his fourth time down this road and he knows exactly what he has to do and he is prepared.

“If he performs well — like he did in Rio Maior — he will do very well. This is the big one and he is ready.”

Back in the Olympic Stadium, Tori Pena will be in exalted company in Qualification Group B of the women’s pole vault today (10.20am) alongside two-time Olympic champ Yelena Isinbayeva (Russia) and the athlete who might hope to challenge her, Silke Spiegelburg, who enjoyed a morale-boosting win at the Monaco Diamond League with a German record 4.82m.

Pena’s Irish record is 4.51m and she will have to go close to that to have any hope of making the final.

Stephanie Reilly will contest the second of the first round heats of the women’s 3,000m steeplechase this morning (11.51am) with the 2009 world champion Marta Dominguez of Spain and big medal hope, Gulcan Mingir of Turkey, for company.

The Wicklow woman arrives on the back of a big 3,000m run at Cork City Sports where she knocked 10 seconds off her previous best.

It has been a record-breaking year for Irish women’s marathon runners and three of the four who achieved the Olympic A standard will be in action tomorrow (11am).

Linda Byrne, DSD clubmate Ava Hutchinson and Catriona Jennings are all in action