Rob Heffernan still the main Irish medal hope

Robert Heffernan believes he is in with a “fighting chance” of defending his World 50km Race Walk title when he toes the line at the IAAF World Championships in Beijing next week.

The championships start this morning, and run until August 30, with Mark English getting the Irish underway in the early hours of this morning in the 800m heats.

Thomas Barr (Ferrybank) is the other Irish competitor on day one of the championships in the heats of the 400m hurdles (11:35am Irish time) with four to qualify automatically from each heat.

Barr and English have made the headlines this year and will be hoping to reach their respective finals but greater expectations understandably lie with Heffernan.

“I’m looking forward to it,” said Heffernan. “Training has gone really well the past couple of months. I’ve gotten into some very good shape. I’m healthy and I’m not injured. All going well, I’ll be in with a fighting chance and look forward to it.”

Heffernan will have to bring the same mentality he drew on famously to win gold on the streets of Moscow in 2013 in what he described as a “Rocky” moment when he beat the Russians in their own backyard. It will be a similar challenge for the Togher athlete when he takes on the Chinese who invest heavily in the sport. “The Chinese, especially, are going to be gunning for it. They invest so much money into walking. I’m just going to have that mentality going into China and replicate something special.

“My training has gone well and if I’m happy on the line and I can enjoy it and I’m willing to fight when it counts I think I can give a good account of myself.”

Training is finally going smoothly for the Cork man who has been beset by injuries over the last year. He rounded out a 100-mile training week before flying out and will now fine-tune his preparations as he gets into peak condition.

“Now it’s just recovery,” he said. “Adapt to the climate and the time difference and some shorter sessions. The work is done.”

Heffernan toes the line next Saturday (12:30am Irish time) and will be flanked by Alex Wright (Leevale) and Brendan Boyce (Letterkenny) in his quest for gold. Wright will compete in his first championships for Ireland and will have already competed in the 20km Race Walk.

Boyce flew out with Heffernan on Tuesday and is aiming for a top 20 finish. “Everything has gone well over the summer,” said Boyce who set a personal best of 3:48:55 back in March and finished 25th in Moscow.

“I’m going in ranked 18th in the world this year so I’m looking to finish in the top 20. The preparations have gone well so just mentally getting through the race and the conditions are going to be tough in Beijing. So if I can get through in the way I hope maybe I can be top 16.”

There are 16 Irish athletes in Beijing. Ireland has a full quota in the women’s 3,000m steeplechase for the first time with Sara Treacy (Dunboyne), Kerry O’Flaherty (Newcastle) and Michelle Finn (Leevale) all having made the grade. In terms of medal expectations, it all boils down to the trio of Heffernan, Barr and English. Heffernan is in the final throes of a glittering career while Barr and English, who will both also compete in the 4x400m relay, are looking to make their imprint on the global stage.