O’Rourke finds her feet once again

A FIGHTING Derval O’Rourke came to the rescue of wounded Irish morale when she put recent mediocrity behind her to win the bronze medal in the final of the women’s 60 metres hurdles at the European Indoor Athletics Championships in Turin yesterday.

This was Ireland’s 12th medal won in these championships since they took on official status in 1970, and it could not have come at a better time, both for the Irish team here and for the Cork woman herself.

She experienced the high life of success in major events in ‘06 with a World Championship gold and a European silver, but has been through hell in the two and a half years since, crushed in both the World Championships and the Olympic Games.