O’Callaghan latest figure to make Lausanne move
The 30-year-old Meathman, a former race walker, has held every national title in this discipline from Community Games right up to his three national senior titles. He won national titles at 10k and 20k and posted his Olympic qualifying time for Sydney in 1999 but had to pull out of the team and retire from race walking the following year suffering from chronic fatigue.
“It was heartbreaking at the time,” he recalled yesterday.
“Myself and Jamie (Costin) both wanted to compete at 50k and Jamie fulfilled his dream. But when something like that happens, you just have to get up and get on with it and I was fortunate in that I continued to coach Jamie. Up to that point we had been working together, coaching each other, and now it was more formalised and I was able to give my total commitment to coaching.”
He progressed to level 3 coaching standard and, in 2005 he became the youngest ever EAA level II race walking judge. He is one of only four European judges nominated for the IAAF Level III exams in Paris at the end of October.
As a race walker, he followed in the footsteps of his father, Bernie, also a former national champion and record holder. Bernie was the first Irish race walker to win an international match abroad in 1981.
“I have attended 26 national championships,” Pierce said. “I love the nationals and while I will be based in Lausanne, I will still look forward to coming home for them.”
His previous positions include media spokesman for Athletics Ireland and events and communications manager with Scottish Athletics.
In recent times, Pat McQuaid moved to Lausanne as president of cycling’s world governing body, the UCI, while Pat Hickey, president of the European Association of National Olympic Committees, also has an office in Lausanne.
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