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.

It was pain in the rain for Ireland on the penultimate night of the European Athletics Championships in Helsinki - both 4x400m relay squads were disqualified, while eighth place was the best return from the four Irish finalists.

Another sensational day in Helsinki has seen three Irish athletes qualify for finals at the European Athletics Championships.