Rob Heffernan: Tweet among my biggest mistakes

His “biggest mistake since Moscow” is how world race walking champion Rob Heffernan has described the controversial tweet that led to him being branded a racist after he made an ill-advised tweet about the Roma community.

During a candid interview on RTÉ radio yesterday, Heffernan said his comment that Roma people should be “shipped out” was an unthinking kneejerk response to reports that gardaí had removed two children from their Roma families amid suspicions they had been kidnapped — suspicions that later proved unfounded.

“I reacted to thinking a child was kidnapped and it was stupid and I never read all the facts and I threw it out and I apologised,” said Heffernan.