Ciarán Ó Lionáird will turn to his home track and the support of the home crowd at the CIT Stadium in Bishopstown this evening (6.30pm) to launch the final phase of his Olympic build-up in the featured Cork City Sports Cork Airport Mile.

Irish hopes of a medal from the European track and field championships in Helsinki were dashed on the final day when leading hope Fionnuala Britton finished fourth in the women’s 10,000m in 32:05.54, over half a minute outside the time which qualified her for the Olympic Games on her debut over the distance.

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.

Three Irish Championship debutants were shown the harsh realities of stepping up to a senior international Games in this morning’s action at the European Athletics Championships in Helsinki.

Brian Gregan will line up for today’s final of the men’s 400m at the European championships in Helsinki as a live medal hope after another impressive performance in the semi-finals that saw him claim automatic qualification by finishing second.

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

Jessie Barr and her brother Tom will have an eye on Olympic qualification when they line up for their respective first round heats of the 400m hurdles at the European track and field championships in Helsinki today.

Colin Griffin has boosted the Irish track and field team for the Olympic Games to 18 after sailing past the Olympic A standard to qualify for the 50k race walking at London 2012.

Joanne Cuddihy will compete in the Olympic 400 metres, having become the 17th Irish track and field athlete to qualify for London 2012.

European cross-country champion Fionnuala Britton has secured her second Olympic 'A' standard for London 2012 by beating the 10,000m mark by 16 seconds.

Ireland’s Olympic selectors have been given a marathon headache, as a fourth athlete has made the qualifying mark for the women’s marathon at London 2012.

Maria McCambridge has become the 15th athlete to qualify for the Irish Track and Field team for this year’s Olympic Games in London.

Tori Pena has become the first Irish pole vaulter in athletics history to qualify for an Olympic Games.

WORLD youth race walking champion Kate Veale has been named on the Irish junior cross-country team for the McCain UK Cross Challenge in Bristol on Sunday.

JOANNE CUDDIHY was in distinguished company at the world championships in Daegu yesterday when she false-started in her semi-final of the women’s 400m less than an hour before reigning Olympic and world champion, Usain Bolt, made a similar exit from the men’s 100m final.

CIARÁN Ó LIONAIRD has been like a breath of fresh air since he arrived at Ireland’s training camp in Daegu to put the finishing touches to his preparations for the World Championships, which get under way today.

DERVAL O’ROURKE (Leevale) bounced back from a disastrous run in Crystal Palace the previous day to win her ninth title at the Woodies DIY National Senior Championships at Morton Stadium yesterday.

Ireland's athletes are 10th of the 12 competing nations after the opening day's events in the European Team Championships 1st League in Izmir, Turkey.

DAVID McCARTHY and Ailís McSweeney qualified for the semi-finals of their respective 800m and 100m events on an exciting, and controversial, morning for Irish athletes at the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona.