Rob Heffernan reunited with gold medal after sting operation

From agent to special agent, the man responsible for managing the day-to-day affairs of the world’s fastest race walker helped pull off a sophisticated sting that landed a stolen gold medal back with its rightful owner.

The drama began just before 7am yesterday when Derry McVeigh, agent to 50km World Champion race walker Rob Heffernan, responded to a message left on his phone asking him to call urgently.

A man identifying himself as a Dublin taxi driver answered the call and asked if the Corkman still had his World Championship medal. He claimed it had been offered for sale to him by a Romanian gypsy.