Heffernan finishes 23rd in China

Robert Heffernan was placed 23rd (1:21:00) over 20km at the IAAF World Race Walking Cup in Taicang, China yesterday.

Heffernan found the leading pace a little too quick for his liking and the 36-year-old was unable to keep tabs with Ukraine’s Ruslan Dmytrenko who won in a new national record of 1:18:52. While the Togher athlete may not have been at the business end of the race, it still indicates he is moving in the right direction for the 50km distance where he will look to win the European Championships in Zurich in August to add to his world title. Donegal’s Brendan Boyce (Letterkenny) was next best of the Irish finishing 77th in 1:26:55.

UCC fresher Luke Hickey had a personal best. finishing 80th in 1:27:51 and Westport’s Cian McManamon was 84th (1:28:51) . Laura Reynolds (Mohill) had her second fastest time in the 20km race walk, finishing 37th in 1:32:25. inside the European standard of 1:33:00.

Ciarán Ó Lionáird’s comeback continued apace at the Jamaica Inivitational in Kingston where he was a close second behind USA’s Will Leer in the 1500m, the Cork man recording 3:41.74. The Leevale and Oregon Track Club athlete improved upon his 4:03 mile and 8th place finish in the mile in Iowa. Meanwhile Clonmel’s Seán Tobin won his 800m race in South Carolina in 1:48.79 while Clonliffe Harriers’s Sergiu Ciobanu, in the process of becoming an Irish citizen, finished 15th in the Hamburg marathon in 2:17:11.