Revitalised O’Rourke bids for Beijing boost at The Mardyke

DERVAL O’ROURKE is hoping that the home fans will give her the lift she needs in advance of the Olympic Games when she returns to The Mardyke — where it all began for her — for today’s Cork City Sports.

It does not seem so long ago since she was the kit-carrier for the major stars — Olympic and world championship heroes that included Sonia O’Sullivan and her own Leevale clubmate, Marcus O’Sullivan — competing at Ireland’s premier athletics meeting at the venue.

Those were inspirational days but now she is the star who, unbelievably, has never won at Cork City Sports despite having won a gold medal in the 60m hurdles at the world indoor championships in Moscow three years ago, before battling her way to a silver medal in a fiercely competitive 100m hurdles competition at the European championships in Gothenburg.