O’Rourke survives injury scare
Fortunately for Cork fans she won the race in Greece, and while her time – 13.13 secs – was hardly something to shout about, the fact that she came through the race intact was the deciding factor in her decision to compete.
O’Rourke, who came off a frustrating start to the season to finish fourth in a sensational 100m hurdles final at the world championships in Berlin last year, faced catastrophe last weekend when she suffered a bad fall in a race in Germany.
“To be honest I did not think she would be ready to compete in Cork at the weekend,” Cahill said.
“She was leading the race and going really well but the last three hurdles came up so quick they caught her off guard and she actually hung up on the last one. She did not fall until just before the line and skidded across the line on her knees and elbows.
“She suffered severe cuts to her knees and elbows, had a badly grazed hip and damaged her ribs and when she turned up for training on Monday night my first reaction was ‘Cork’s out’ because the wounds were weeping and looked dreadful.
“But Derval is a tough cookie and she decided there and then she wanted to run in Cork. We began looking around for a low-key race to see if she could get through it and then we would decide.
“Thessalonika was not the type of meeting we would have liked because the field was weak enough but she came through the race and she will be competing in Cork.”
Yesterday her main rival and hot favourite to win the event, Priscilla Lopes-Schliep from Canada, was among the guests at a lunch hosted by Brigadier-General Paul Pakenham at Collins Barracks to celebrate the strong bonds between the Army and Cork City Sports throughout the event’s history.
The Canadian, who has studied sociology and criminal justice at the University of Nebraska, was the bronze medal winner in the 100m hurdles at the Beijing Olympics and took silver at the world championships in Berlin last year when O’Rourke was fourth.
“Derval is in a no-win situation here,” coach Cahill admitted. “We are looking at what will probably be the best 100m hurdles race in Europe this year and Derval is not strong enough to be running at her best at this moment and then be able to hold it for three or four weeks until the European Championships in Barcelona.”
Her training partner, Ailis McSweeney, returned one of her fastest ever times in Wallone on Wednesday night when she beat her Irish rivals in both the heats and final of the 100m.
The Leevale athlete, national senior champion over 100m, won the heat in 11.72 secs from Amy Foster, 11.73 secs, and indoor champion, Claire Brady, 11.77 secs. Then she confirmed her supremacy in the final which she won in 11.62 secs to 11.65 for Foster and 11.66 secs for Brady.
All three are members of the relay squad – along with Kelly Proper and Niamh Whelan – for the European Championships. They all compete at Cork City Sports tomorrow where there will be two world class 100m races.
At the same meeting in Belgium Brona Furlong (Slaney Olympic AC) equalled the qualifying standard of 57.80 for the European Championships when finishing second in the 400m hurdles.
And there was good news for Paul Hession yesterday when his old sparring partner, Brendan Christian (Antigua & Barbuda), confirmed he will compete in both the 100m and 200m.
Last year he won the 100m from Hession in Cork but withdrew from the 200m which Hession won impressively.
Tomorrow Hession will compete in just the 200m as he gets his final run-up to the European championships under way. Former world champion over 100m, Kim Collins, who was also a finalist in the 200m at the Olympic Games in Beijing, will arrive in Cork today for the event.
There was disappointment for race walker, Robert Heffernan, yesterday when he was forced to withdraw from the meet on medical advice. He is on treatment for a troublesome hip injury.
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