Birthday boy Marcus Lawler wins title in sensational style

On what was his 21st birthday, Marcus Lawler came of age in style yesterday by blitzing the field to win the 200m title at the GloHealth National Indoor Championships in Athlone.

Fittingly, it took less than 21 seconds for him to confirm his status as Ireland’s fastest man, his time of 20.96 seconds establishing a stadium record and marking his first sub-21 clocking indoors.

What’s more, it proved to everyone, and perhaps most of all to Lawler himself, that the path to Olympic qualification is now looking a little clearer.